Hey, You
by Juliette Stark-Barton
Summary: "Pfft. Jack Frost, yeah right." I turned away, wanting to get as far away from this freak as possible. I ran smack into his chest and he pouted, hovering with his staff. "Well, just a question, really, if you don't believe in me...how can you see me?" His cyan eyes bored into mine and I rolled my brown ones while rubbing my now bruised nose. "Because I'm going crazy, that's why."
1. Shiawase

**Why am I starting a new story when I already have two stories? Very excellent question. Anyways, saw the movie Rise of The Guardians and this idea wouldn't leave me alone since then. Might take this down if I don't come up with anymore ideas or it doesn't get very popluar, but we'll cross that bridge when we get there. Anyways, this is my OC Lyric, and this is just the prologue, so more information will come in the next chapter. Anyways, review, tell me what you think, and blah blah blah...**

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"Psst, Lyric!"

"…"

"Lyric!"

"…ngh.."

"Lyr, if you don't wake up, I'll tell mommy about that party you went to without her permission!"

"Alright! I'm up…I'm up," I yawned, stretching my arms up and popping my back. Looking around my room, I realized it was still extremely dark and absolutely no sunlight was pouring through the windows, no birds outside chirping, no clatters of pans and pots downstairs, and most of all, no smell of bacon being sizzled on the stove. So, exactly, why was I up? My little sister, Paula, was still in her My Little Pony pajamas by my bedside, the little snot who woke me up from my wonderful slumber. I was really warm underneath my covers, too! "Wait, wait. Paula, why'd you wake me up? It's not even morning, and there's no bacon, so just go to sleep." I poker her forehead on the words "no bacon" and laid back down with the covers over my body again.

The little brat instead pouted and decided to rip the covers from my body and bunch them up, then walked over to the window. Since for some reason she knows how to work a window at her age, she turned the knob and pushed it up, and held my blankets outside menacingly. I sat up and froze - any move I made could determine the fate of my beloved Powerpuff girls sheets (hey, I still remember the good old shows). Hugging my knees to my chest due to the breeze coming from the window, I sighed and asked, "What do you want?"

She still held my sheets outside the window and replied matter-o-factly, "You have to stay up with me and wait for Santa Clause to come down the chimney."

I scoffed, "Um, no thank you, Paula. Now just give me back my -"

She chose that moment to drop then catch them again, feigning shock. "Woah! That was close!" she whispered, eyes big and innocent. I had stood up and was about to jump for them out the window until she caught them again, my eyes wide. She turned to me again, a cutesy smile on her 7-year-old face. "Lyric, you will stay up with me, won't you?"

I inwardly groaned and nodded, holding my hand out for my sheets which she happily returned once I had agreed. Wrapping the large blanket around me, Paula led me downstairs "quietly and sneakily", as she put it, and we passed the dining room and my parent's room. Finally, once in the living room, we sat down on one of the couches and waited for Santa Clause to come out through the chimney and deliver the anticipated presents to my sister and I. The lights on the tree were amazingly bright and yellow, and the large tree was decorated with random ornaments of every shape and color (courtesy of my sister), and each family member's own ornament. Paula's was Tinkerbell, my mom's was Maleficent (don't ask why), my dad's was a hammer, and mine was a light blue music note with tiny sparkles and snowflakes on it. Looking over to Paula, her eyes were glued to the chimney; she really wanted to see this guy give her her presents. At times like these, I really see the resemblance between us - the brown hair (hers is always in two pigtails), the big, brown eyes, and the tan skin. Not to mention we're both masters at getting what we want.

I stood up, "Wait a minute, Pau." I left into the kitchen, grabbing a box of Oreos and pouring two glasses of milk into her My Little Pony cup and my Powerpuff girls cup. Once I returned, her face brightened up and she eagerly took her cup of milk from my hand and watched me open the Oreo package. "I think Santa isn't the only one who deserves cookies," I said as she giggled. So there we sat, munching on our cookies and drinking our milk.

Paula bit into her 4th cookie and asked me, "Sis, when do you think Santa will get here?"

I gulped down some milk and replied, "I don't know, Pau. But whenever he passes the U.S., our house will be the first ones to get presents," I tapped her nose and smiled when she laughed.

"You believe in him, don't you? Because people at my school say that he isn't real. But he is! Right?" she looked up at me with expecting eyes pleading me to say yes.

I sighed. "Paula, those kids are butts. He _is _real, and don't let anyone tell you otherwise. _I _believe in Santa," I wasn't lying to ease her feelings. I really _did_ believe in the old myth. I just didn't tell anybody. I mean, who couldn't believe in a guy who rides around in a sleigh with freaking flying reindeer delivering presents in one night? It was awesome! I've believed in him ever since I was a kid, along with the Easter Bunny, the Sandman, and, of course, the Tooth Fairy. One thing I didn't believe in was the Boogeyman - I mean, come on, a guy like that doesn't exist. He has got to have something better to do with his life than scare the crap out of little kids.

This seemed to satisfy her, since she went back to munching on her cookies and drinking her milk. "I hope he gets here soon!"

"Me, too."

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**Hopefully, I'll get ideas and stuff. Thanks for reading ^^**


	2. Not Exactly

**Hay guys, another update so quickly! And so many favorites and fallows so quickly! Thanks so much, guys. C: Anyways, we get more information here, and it's now three days before Christmas the year following that last Christmas in the last chapter. So, this is a year later, basically. Anyways, review and favorite, follow if you like it!**

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My family lives in a two story house next to even more two story houses in a small, secure neighborhood in Colorado Springs. In the middle of no where is where we basically live, with literally nothing to do, except go to school, hang out in town, or swim/skate in the lake. My sister thinks it's the coolest place on earth, since we have our parents, friends and "animals" all in one place. When she says "animals", she's referring to the forest in the back of the neighborhood and town. It's filled with random forest animals like deer, squirrels, rabbits, lizards, iguanas…

So, Christmas is in a month, and the town cannot sit still for a minute - something needs more ribbon, another thing needs more sparkles, and _damn those carolers. _They go to each and _every _house on the block and every apartment complex just to sing about the freaking days of Christmas and about their true love giving them random things, and then demanding cookies, milk or other necessities of caroling. I'd only go caroling for the free food. Anyways, when it isn't Christmas, our town is pretty quiet and calm. It's usually cold here, since it _is_ Colorado, but we can have our days when it's warm and a bit humid outside. But my question is what is a Colombian - Brazilian family doing in America? My father's side of the family is Colombian, while my mother's side is Brazilian. Either way, every family reunion, I have people poking and pinching my cheeks and saying how I've grown up or they haven't seen me in years or since I was a baby. It's really awkward.

Today, I'm supposed to take my little sister shopping for any presents for my friends or our family members while my parents were out grocery shopping. Nothing like a little ankle-bitter following you around and tugging on your sleeve to buy you something or another (No, really, she does bite).

"Paula! Come on, we're leaving," I called up the stairs as I tugged on my black and white checkered hoodie. Foot steps came stomping down and she soon appeared, her pink tutu over her jeans and wearing a shirt murdered by sparkles. She was having trouble putting on her black sweater, so I rolled my eyes and squatted down to her level to get her arms through the holes. "It goes _over _your arms, smart one."

Paula stuck her tongue out at me as I buttoned her up. "Smart one," she mimicked in a deep voice. I poked her forehead and stood back up to open the door, watching her hop outside while I grabbed our scarves. I locked it, then began down the sidewalk with her hand in mine.

"Jeez, it's freezing out here," I said as I zipped up my jacket and adjusted my scarf. I had Paula's scarf cover her whole nose and mouth, since I didn't want to get blamed for any cold she got by my parents. "Okay, let's stop here first."

We stopped at almost every store, excluding Victoria's Secret. I was not about to scar Paula's eyes with mannequins and lingerie. By noon we had almost 9 bags full of stuff we had to ship to South America, and hungry stomachs. We bought something to munch on and decided to rest by the water fountain in the middle of town, which wasn't giving off water since it'd freeze the minute it would pop out of the faucet. "Paula, don't tell mom I gave you soda, got it?"

"Got it." the child replied happily as she sipped her plastic McDonald's cup filled with coke. I hid a grin at her eagerness to swallow down the whole cup in one minute and returned to my fries, picking one up and throwing it to a stray pigeon that was looking for scraps near the bench we were seated at. The bird waddled over to the fry and picked at it, getting half of it in its beak and downed it, going for seconds. Paula noticed and gasped at how close the bird was to us - she's always had this fascination with animals, it kinda creeps me out - and pulled a fry from her bag and threw gently towards the pigeon. This attracted one other pigeon to flock towards us, and she squealed with joy over two birds. "They're so cute!"

I hummed in response and took a bite out of a fry. A chilly, and I mean _chilly_ breeze blew at us and I shivered as I hugged myself to keep warm. I absolutely _hated _winter time. I enjoyed Christmas and New Year's, but just the climate was the annoying part. Who was supposedly the keeper of the winter? Jack Frost? Why's he have to target Colorado to be the coldest place on earth? Well, besides Antarctica and Alaska. "I hate winter," I mumbled to myself. Paula, apparently, heard me.

"Don't hate winter, Lyric! Or else…Jack Frost will bite your nose!" she scolded.

"You mean _nip _at my nose?"

"Yes! Bite!"

I rolled my eyes and laughed. "Yeah, well, newsflash, Jack Frost isn't real. Not as real as Santa or the Easter Bunny, Pau."

She pouted and crossed her arms. "He is too!"

"Sure."

Once we reached the house, I set down the bags and unlocked the door to let Paula in to warm up. "Here, take these inside and put 'em in the kitchen, okay?"

"Okay!" she took them in three at a time while I walked down the driveway to pick up the mail.

Opening the small metal box to check what mail had arrived today, I ceased to notice the floating figure behind me, hovering just a few feet above the ground. I hummed as I collected the random letters and bills and shuffled through them, oblivious to the boy next to me, interested in the papers in my hands. I felt a cool breeze pass through me as I read over them and I shivered, cursing under my breath about stupid winter and having to go out in the freezing cold with no hot cocoa or anything and how _stupid _Jack Frost was -

"Well, that's not very nice," the figure said next to me, making me jump and whip around. My eyes darted around for the source of the voice - pretty sexy voice, if you ask me - but found nothing. Nice, I really _am _going crazy, hearing voices and random shivers from random winds that come from no where. Finally dismissing it as a freak little mind screw, I continued walking up to my front door, until that same voice called out, "So, you're just gonna ignore me? _Me? _Jack Frost?"

I slowly turned around to come face to face with a boy, probably 16 or 17. He had silver locks that appeared windswept to the right, and had deep, bright blue eyes that had a glint in them. Man, oh man, those eyes were just…wow. He had on a blue hoodie that had light, white designs on the shoulders, and brown pants on. What threw me off was that he was bare-foot in this weather. It had to have been at least 28 degrees outside, and this guy was running around in a hoodie, pants and no shoes on? And people called me crazy. He was also carrying around a brown staff with thin white…well, they looked like frosts to me, going up and down the wood. He waved a hand in front of my face, "Hello? Anyone there?"

I blinked and shook my head, registering what he said his name was. "You're…Jack Frost?"

The boy straightened up a bit, putting on a charming smile. "The one and only,"

"Pfft. Jack Frost, yeah right." I turned away, wanting to get as far from this freak as possible. I ran smack into his chest and he pouted, hovering with his staff. "Well, just a question, really, if you don't believe in me…how can you see me?"

His cyan eyes bored into mine and I rolled my brown ones while rubbing my now bruised nose. "Because I'm going crazy, that's why."

He scoffed. "Crazy? Just 'cause can see me?" he feigned looking insulted and blocked my path by stepping in front of me. "Hmph. What's it gonna take to convince you, girl?"

I crossed my arms, "My name isn't _girl_, it's Lyric. And what's it gonna take to convince me you're really Jack Frost? How about a better outfit?" I pointed to his hoodie and pants. "I thought Jack Frost was supposed to be, like, all in blue, with sparkles and snowflakes and bells and -"

"You want me to look _gay?_" He asked, aghast at my suggestion in his outfit change. I nearly doubled over laughing at the look on his face - clearly shocked and insulted and angry all at the same time. I held up my hands in protest as I continued on.

"No! No, I just…thought he'd be more mythical and magical,"

His face fell and he answered flatly, "Well, you thought wrong. I _am_ human. Minus the never feeling cold part and never dying part,"

I raised an eyebrow, "You really think you're Jack Frost, don't you?" Man, this guy won't give up. What would he be called - a cosplayer? I think Anime Expo is in Los Angeles, not Colorado Springs. Maybe I should call a cab…

Once again, the boy pouted and crossed his arms, "I _am_ Jack Frost! Here, you see that tree right there?" he pointed to the large oak tree that grew in our neighbor's yard. Its branches were supporting about 10 pounds of snow on them, and the leaves were completely stripped off.

I nodded. "Yeah, so?"

He smirked and raised his staff as he walked over, motioning me to follow. Once the wood touched the bark of the tree, swirls of white designs sprouted onto the tree, dancing around the bark and staying frozen in place once they stopped swirling around. I put a hand to my mouth in shock. I hesitantly reached out to brush my fingers against it, and felt what seemed like thin ice on the bark; it felt wonderful beneath my hand. The cool ice reminded me of a snowflake and I looked back towards the stranger - or, used-to-be stranger, who was wearing a knowing smirk and a look of triumph on his face.

"Jack Frost?"

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**Don't know when I'll be able to update with soccer games coming up, but I'll try just for you guys! Song for this Chapter is "Not Exactly" by DeadMau5.**


	3. Cat Ears Switch

**Hay guys. Pretty sick over here, but no worries, an update is here! Lol. **

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"Lyric! Aren't you gonna come inside?" Paula yelled from the doorway, but froze when she saw that I was talking to a boy. The grin on her face was priceless - she knew she could use this against me since Mom and Dad didn't let me go near guys. She smiled and "innocently" asked, "Who are you talking to?"

I turned back to Jack and rolled my eyes, thinking of an excuse. He smiled when he saw Paula, no doubt dotting over her curious and mischievous expression on her 8 year old face.

"Friend of yours?" Jack asked, amused.

"You could say that. She's my snot of a little sister." I got an idea as I faced Paula, who was taking careful steps down the 4 steps at the door to come meet us. I replied, "Paula. Can I trust you with a secret?"

She pushed her scarf down so she could answer clearer. "What kind of secret?" her breath came out in short, little puffs due to the cold. Her brown eyes looked from me to Jack, suspicious of something. "Is it a bad secret?"

Shaking my head, I squat down to her level and she gets closer to hear the secret. "That's Jack Frost standing right there, you know,"

Shocked wasn't a good enough word for Paula's expression. More like joy mixed with surprise and adoration. I stood back up and she stepped forward, placing a hand on the winter spirit's sleeve. He jumped a little in surprise, and looked down towards her. "A-Are you really real, Jack Frost?" Now, I didn't know why, but he looked overjoyed to have her ask that. His blue eyes lit up and it was like he won the lottery and just won the key to the world all in one hour. He kneeled down and nodded his head, still while grinning like a (sexy) idiot.

"O-Of course, kid! I'm Jack Frost, why wouldn't I be real?" he chuckled while twirling his staff in his hand. "I was showing your big sister a trick, actually."

Her eyes shined and she began to bounce with excitement. "A trick? Really?"

I nodded and pointed to the tree behind us, which was still adorned with thin, white frost is various designs. She ran over to the tree like it was our Christmas tree with presents stacked up underneath it and ran a careful hand over the markings. She turned back to gaze at me and giggled, "Sis! Jack Frost _is _real! I told you so!"

I rolled my eyes and laughed, squatting down so she could climb onto my back for a piggy-back ride. I smiled at Jack, who had a smirk on his face from Paula's statement, "Yeah yeah. I guess. Come on, Paula, we have to go wrap those presents. Say bye to Jack,"

Paula pouted and held onto my shoulders. "But we didn't get to play…"

The boy beat me to my answer, "Don't worry, kiddo, we'll play a game another time, okay? We'll have a snowball fight, you and me against Lyric." This satisfied the eight-year-old, who gasped and giggled with delight.

"Really? Yay! When, Lyric? When?" she asked eagerly, giving me her big, puppy eyes.

"Yes, Lyric, when?" he smirked, those blue eyes beginning to get to me. They were so blue - they sparkled and hand a glint of mischief in them. Like a big, blue ocean that was frozen over and was cut into two circles that make up eyes. Dazzling.

I shook those thoughts away and answered, "Well, we have school tomorrow, remember, Paula? So how about when you come back from elementary and I get back from soccer practice?" Paula nodded and cheered, her little tan face lighting up. I smiled and began my way back into the house, setting her down so she could take off her jacket and scarf. I lingered outside as Jack walked over to the doorway.

"Looks like someone _does _believe in me." He triumphantly said, leaning on his staff.

I smirked and crossed my arms, "Well, somebody _still _hates winter. Anyways, meet you here tomorrow, right? She'll be crushed if you don't come."

He nodded and chuckled, "Don't worry, I'll be here. After…school, right?"

"Right…well, after soccer for me."

The blank look on his face said everything. "You don't know what soccer is, do you?"

"Not at all,"

I sighed and leaned against the doorway. "Just come back tomorrow. Okay?"

"You don't have to beg, Lyric," he smirked and began to walk off he steps of the porch. That little cocky - ! My cheeks flamed up and I was about to tell him something back, until he soared away with the wind. Yeah, the _wind. _This guy…was he for real? The _actual _Jack Frost?

Guess I'll have to wait and find out…

I nodded my head to the music blasting from my ear buds, enjoying the several bass drops to Skrillex. I've always loved music, ever since I was a little kid music was my favorite class. So much, that my Dad showed me how to play guitar, since _his _dad played guitar when he was younger, too. Music was where you could let go and not care who sees you, or what you're doing and no one can judge you. I usually listen to Dubstep, since the several sounds and loud beats are like rivers of sweet, sweet honey to my ears. Rock and roll was another favorite of mine, mostly old bands, like The Eagles or The Beatles. The guitar used in both of those bands really inspire me and I know some songs today, which I take in stride. So, here I was, after the crazy and, well, unusual day I had today, in my room with the volume turned up in my Ipod and my ramen in the microwave downstairs. The window in my room was closed, but the curtains were drawn back, revealing a dark night sky with a few clouds over the moon, and tons of little, golden stars littering the sky. I sighed as I sat up on my green and blue checkered bed sheets, simply looking out the window and enjoying the warmth in my room. My sweat pants were on and keeping my legs cozy, and I had my team soccer shirt on from freshman year. The red falcon on the front was my school's mascot, and on the back it had a falcon drawn by one of my friends. My hair was already short, up to my ears and wavy, so no need to worry about that.

I was in my sophomore year, 15 years old. Still a kid, in my opinion, and as a kid, I could do childish things, like sit around and do nothing but color all day, or get excited when something glows in the dark, or eat chocolate like my life depended on it. I don't want to grow up, I'll be grown up when I'm eighteen, so I have three years left of childhood. I mean, childhood is where you can be whatever you want to be! And things like the Tooth fairy, Santa Clause and the Easter Bunny existed! Why would anyone want to let go of that?

I looked away from the window when I heard the beep of the microwave go off. I pushed myself off the bed and down to the kitchen, grabbing a fork and my hot bowl of noodles, bringing it back upstairs. I slurped down some noodles as I sat cross-legged on my bed, enjoying the taste of the hot spices run down my throat. This is the life~

_Tap tap tap._

I halted my slurping. What was that? _Probably the tree outside, Lyric, _I told myself and went back to enjoying my ramen. Anyways, this is the life, just sitting here in my cozy, warm room eating and not giving a -

_Tap tap tap tap tap._

My head snapped up and I looked at the window, and saw not _just _the tree outside it.

Jack Frost was perched on the branch with his hood up and rapping his staff against the glass, trying to get my attention. I stared for a second before setting down my bowl of ramen on my nightstand and standing up carefully, padding over to the window to undo the lock and push it upwards. I whisper-shouted, "What the flipping hell are you _doing here?!_"

He winced as he pulled his hoodie down. "Ouch. Language," he climbed inside and dusted himself off, spilling a few scattered snowflakes onto the ground. "And it's nice to see you, too."

"Yeah, well, my parents are gonna think I'm more of a freak for talking to myself, so just get to the point of why you're here," I replied, closing the window after him. "And you're making it freezing in here, too."

He held up his hands in protest, "Hey, Jack _Frost_, spirit of winter, obviously," I sat down on my bed and stirred my ramen as he looked around my room in interest. "And I just wanted to say…um, good night."

I looked up at him, not buying it for one second. "Good night? Why?"

Jack looked around nervously, "Just to…be polite, you know. Gotta…gotta be a gentleman and stuff!" he scratched the back of his head and tried a smile on me. It made me melt inside, yes, but it didn't convince me. I just didn't push any further and decided to ignore it - I mean, how often can you have Jack freaking Frost in your bedroom? Not often in Colorado, let me tell you.

"Whatever. Well, good night, Jack." I said as I grabbed my bowl of ramen and slurped up a noodle.

"What's…that?" he asked, looking interested yet disgusted at the same time.

I looked up, "What? Ramen?"

"Ra…men?"

"Soup. Well, Japanese soup. Its spicy. And yummy," I clarified, setting the bowl down. He still looked curious, so I sighed and asked, "Wanna try some?"

Jack looked surprised. "Oh, um, no. Not really. Well…is it good?" Setting his staff against the wall, he stepped forward to look inside the plastic bowl.

I smiled and replied, "Of course! Trust me, I wouldn't be eating it if it weren't good. Here, try some." I wrapped some noodles around my fork and held it over the bowl, careful not to spill it as he took the fork and hesitantly stuffed the fork into his mouth, giving me a look that said, "If this kills me, I'll haunt you". I laughed and said, "Come on, its good! Really,"

He munched.

Then swallowed.

And his eyes lit up like a Christmas tree. "That was good! It was spicy, but hot, and yummy, and just wow! You were right, it tastes so…so…"

"…wow?"

"Yes!"

I smirked, "Glad you liked it, Jackie. You can have the rest, if you want. I gotta go to bed, soon, anyways," I handed him the bowl, which he gladly took with a look of gratefulness (who knew a winter spirit would like spicy ramen?) and I stood up, opening the window again, letting a chilly breeze float in, wrapping around us both. It made me shiver, but was probably like wind on a hot summer day to Jack.

"Well, thanks for the…soup, Lyric. I'll be back for more tomorrow," he smirked, hopping out into the branch of the oak tree outside the window. I smiled and yawned, waving my hand.

"Don't mention it, dude. Well, see you tomorrow. _Boa noite, _Jack."

"Huh?"

"It means good night in Portuguese. Just get outta here, you icicle!" he laughed and hopped into the air, the wind taking him back to wherever he came from.

Alaska, maybe?

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**Thank you for all of your lovely favorites and follows and reviews! Song for this chapter is "Cat Ears Switch" by Rin and Len Kagamine.**


	4. He's All Me Me Me

**Man, you guys are getting a lot of love if I'm updating this much XD Thank you for 10 reviews and so many faves and follows!**

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I attend a catholic high school, with absolutely no boys. An all-girl's school, with simply girls and a few male teachers. My parents (ahem, my _mother_) is so _paranoid _about keeping me away from guys, because my school comes first, and then my social life, then soccer. Well, switch the social life and soccer, and we're cool. I'm on the junior varsity soccer team, while also trying to be number one in all of my classes. Except, the thing is, I couldn't care less about my grades. I know I have to keep them up because of college and stuff like that, but I really care about soccer more than anything - well, besides finding a guy to settle down with and stuff. I can dream, and I've dreamed that he'd find me in an isle at a record shop or Academy sports store and we'd talk it up, then date, then finally marry! Also adopt two kids from Brazil. But that'll happen later.

I paused The Eagle's guitar solo to open my red locker and stuff my scarf inside, along with my white and black checkered jacket. This year I got stuck with a bottom locker, and it's not so bad - the girl above me, Leah, drops her stuff on me sometimes, but she's so nice about it and apologizes immediately so I forget I was mad in the first place. She's in cross country, so she mainly drops her running shoes on me, but I'm never rude about it. Unplugging my ear buds from my ears, I yawn and rub my eyes to get the sleep out of them (I fell asleep in the car while we were dropping off Paula). Man, I have nothing against Mondays, I just wish they'd die a painful death by being burned to the stake like a witch. I grabbed my world history book and glanced at the pictures I had of my old school and celebrities on my locker before closing it and leaning against it lazily. The uniform sucked - a blue checkered skirt, with a red vest or red sweater over a white button-up shirt. I chose to wear black khaki pants and shorts against the skirt, except for mass days, where I had to be a girl for a day. So today, I was rocking the vest and pants with the Sperry's we had to wear and my hair straightened.

"You look tired," a voice says to me. I crane my neck to the side to see my friend, Krystal, sitting next to my backpack, smiling while munching on her pop tart she had brought for breakfast. Her black hair was stunning and in perfect condition, as usual, and she was wearing her ice-cream beanie with a knitted cherry on top to keep warm. Krystal was the coolest Asian I knew - she had a thing for Korean boy bands and learning their dance routines, plus loved to eat sweets. Her sarcastic sense of humor never failed to cheer me up whenever I was having a bad day, along with her puppy face she had (like Paula's).

I smiled weakly and sighed, "Yeah, well, Paula and I went shopping yesterday for my relatives in Brazil and Colombia. It was kinda tiring."

She swallowed a piece of strawberry pop tart, "She kept bugging you?"

"Not really - we got it done. I stayed up late, though, so…" I yawned as my sentence trailed off. She nodded and bit into her pop tart again, leaning against the lockers with me. "Is Ifeoma here yet?"

"Yeah, downstairs, getting breakfast and finishing homework." she shivered, pulling her hat downwards more, "Jeez, it's still freezing in here, don't'cha think?"

I blinked, then noticed the chilly draft coming through the hallway, and the other girls putting their stuff away also looking a bit curious as to why it's cold in the school. Usually, the staff puts on the heater to keep us warm, since we _are_ girls, and we can complain like nobody's business. I nodded and pulled my knees closer to my chest. _I hope it doesn't stay cold like this all day, _I grumpily think as my eyes shut closed and I begin to doze off. _Krystal will wake me up…_

"Hey, is it me, or is it _really _cold in here?" My friend, Elizabeth, asked us as she set her tray down on our cafeteria table. Her glasses, round like Harry Potter's, were set high on her nose and her dark brown hair was tied back in a ponytail and she, like the rest of the school, was rocking the skirt. I bit into my turkey sandwich and listened as Krystal replied.

"I knew I'm not the only one! It _is _cold around here," she stirred her chicken noodle soup around with her spoon, and I was reminded of last night's incident with Jack. _"That was good! It was spicy, but hot, and yummy, and just wow!" _He lit up when he tried that ramen, and was so happy when I gave it to him to take back with him…it was actually pretty, well, _cute_ for a guy. I ceased my chewing as I remembered his unusual snow white hair and blue hoodie lined with frost, and those blue, twinkling eyes. I didn't even notice I was zoning out when I heard Ifeoma, another good friend of mine, snap her fingers in my face and say my name a couple of times.

"Yo, Lyric! Are you listening?" she asked and I blinked, looking around to see Elizabeth and Krystal giving me looks.

"Huh? Oh, yeah, I'm listening. What'd you say, Ifeoma?"

Her hair was in braids, as it always was, and she was also rocking the skirt. But, she's sorta like me, and prefers to wear pants, except she's too lazy to go and buy some to wear. Her glasses were on her nose, as well, and she replied, "I asked if you were cold today, too, fool."

I swallowed my piece of sandwich, "Yeah, it is kinda cold in here today. Maybe the heater is broken?" Just as I answered, my other friends, Gabriela, Reina and Vivian joined us for lunch, just as they do everyday. "Hey, guys."

"You guys are cold, too? I've noticed that!" Vivian said as she set down her bag of fruits. She had this fruit diet - she wanted to see how long she could last with just fruits for lunch. Well, it's supposedly doing wonders for her figure, even though she's perfectly fine the way she is. She's petite and bond, with a kind face that welcomes you in, and she's adorable to have around. "Well, I like the cold, so I don't really have a problem with it."

Krystal shrugged, "I just think it's weird, you know?"

"No, stupid, we don't," Reina cut in, grinning at her little insult. Reina had this thing for calling people (okay, _us_) stupid. Her Spanish accent made it sound funnier, though, so we had no problem with it at all. She had long, light brown hair and brown eyes to match, and was lightly pale.

I giggled as I finished off my sandwich, then wiped my mouth of any crumbs. I turned to Gabriela, her curly brown hair in a ponytail and she was sporting her reading glasses while she wrote down a geometry problem. "And you, Miss Gabriela? You feeling cold here, too?"

She looked up and looked at each of us, then shrugged, "Not really." Jeez. This girl is invincible in anything. She made excellent grades and was never a bad friend to any of us.

"Gabriela, you cheat, you're already too smart and nice for your own good." Ifeoma said as she sipped her Caprisun juice pouch. I looked in her direction and thought I had seen a flash of white and blue - but that's impossible. Right?

Let's hope.

I stretched my arms upwards as I walked down the empty third floor hallway, on my way to Mr. Jurick's class to deliver some documents from Ms. Galassi. Both theology teachers were incredibly nice to each of their students, and also very funny and loose. I remember being in Mr. Jurick's class for freshman year and making smart-ass jokes about everything and even managing to get _him _to laugh. I rounded the corner and opened the doors leading to the stair way. The large window gave a spectacular view of the outside field, which was coated with a perfect layer of snow and frozen icicles on the trees. The track went around the icy field, where we practiced soccer and softball. I lingered near the glass, holding the documents near my chest and simply gazing outside of the window, noting the gray skies and clouds covering the sun_. Looks like it's gonna be a cold soccer practice today, _I thought to myself as I left my handprint on the glass. A cool chill ran down my spine and I shivered, cursing the school rule of no non-uniform jackets or sweaters during school hours.

"Man, you like to curse, huh, Lyric?" a voice said behind me.

"You have no idea - wait, what?" I whipped around and met eyes with Jack, who was standing by the banister and smirking his icy little smirk of his.

_"JACK?!"_

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**And there ya go. A sort of cliff hanger. Song for this chapter is "He's all Me Me Me" by Hans Zimmer (Sherlock Holmes Soundtrack). I don't know why, honestly, but man, it got me writing. **_  
_


	5. Greyhound

**Yaay an update. Nuuu midterms this week. Song for this chapter is Greyhound by Swedish House Mafia. Made me feel badass while writing it.**

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"_The soccer bus is leaving, the soccer bus is leaving."_

"CRAP!" I cursed as I grabbed my bag from the locker room and tugged on my shin guards onto my legs then made a mad dash for the door, yelling, "Excuse me!" when I bumped into some girls who were changing for basketball. I decided against the stairs and instead mashed the down button for the elevator - ignoring the elevator ban for students - tapping my foot impatiently against the tiled floor, begging God to make the elevator hurry up. Finally a small "Ding!" sounded, and I rushed into the small box as my friend, Cheryl, stepped out with her crutches.

"Woah, you late again?" she asked as I pushed the first floor button. Her brown hair was in her usual ponytail with her yellow bow dotted with black dots.

I flashed a smile and replied, "You know it! Bye Cheryl!" The doors closed and I strapped on my other shin guard onto my left leg, then took out my socks from my bag to tug on while I ran out of the door once the elevator stopped on the first floor. The cafeteria was still full with people waiting for their rides and people just mingling around with others. Teachers were also still here, grabbing something from the vending machine or getting stuff from the front office to leave for the day. I passed a group of friends and yelled bye while they gave me weird looks. I ran out through the glass doors and carefully across the street and into the parking lot, where the school's bus was already up and running, with coach standing outside of it, checking his watch and tapping his foot on the concrete. He looked up and climbed onto the bus once he saw me, and I stepped inside to take a seat.

"Late again, Lyric?" he asked as he sat in the driver's seat, his Spanish accent thick as he spoke. I sat in the seat behind him, setting down my bag and taking a gulp of air. Coach was wearing his usual sunglasses and his red falcon t-shirt, with some sweat pants on due to the cold.

"Sorry, coach, won't happen again," we both knew it was a lie, but neither of us said anything as he started on his way towards the field. I had a feeling I was gonna be running extra laps…As we started on our way towards the filed, I began to change into my soccer cleats, now that I had more time. The team was all here, each in their own seats conversing about random topics. Speaking of cleats, I'll keep them on after practice to kick the crap out of that little winter frostbite, who just decided to show up at my school for no reason! The memory came into my mind as I tied the shoelaces to my black cleats.

"_What the flipping flip do you think you're doing here?! What if someone sees you floating around with no shoes on?!" I whisper-screamed at him while looking around the stairwell, looking out for anyone that might come up or down the stairs. Jack pouted, and leaned against the window pane._

"_I don't think anyone's seen me if there hasn't been an announcement or anything, right? I mean, it's simple, Lyric," his facial expression became serious for a second as he explained this to me, "If people don't believe in me, they don't see me. But, since _you_ do believe in me, you _can _see me. Simple as that." He shrugged and I was speechless for a minute. No one could see him? How many people actually do believe in him? _

"_Jack…then why are you here, if no one can see you?" I asked, my anger slowly boiling away, being replaced with concern. _

"_I wanted to see where you go to school!" he replied, serious façade melting away and his usual cheerfulness coming back. I rolled my eyes at his answer and started down the stairs, with him trailing behind me. "It's pretty boring, really…"_

_Scoffing, I pushed the door open to the second floor and started down the hallway towards Mr. Jurick's classroom. "Welcome to reality." We passed the senior's and freshman's lockers, with Jack asking what they were, and me answering his question, then he asked why we even needed books to read from, then I replied because we have to learn stuff, then he asked why, then I said because, and he asked because why, and I ignored him until we reached Mr. Jurick's room. _

Jack eventually left after that, claiming he had "work" to do up in Canada. Thank God, too, I don't know why I would have done if he had stayed. I'd be talking to myself and marked as mentally unstable for the rest of my life. Before I knew it, practice was already over and I was walking towards the gates leading out of the field. Practice had been hard today, since we have a game in two days, so we had to run extra if we didn't get something right. Good thing the field wasn't very big, or else we'd be dead from exhaustion. I only got pushed down once today, which is weird, since I played really rough and always got pushed down when I went for the ball. Guess the holiday season is distracting people nowadays. It was still cold outside, but since I just came from practice, the breeze was a nice, cool chill to me and cooled me off as I walked. My cleats clacked against the concrete as I passed the familiar town and its stores, saying a few hellos to neighbors I spotted on the streets. Once I reached the neighborhood, I began to get cold. Tugging my jacket on, I felt a presence next to me, and my eyes narrowed.

"Cold?" Jack Frost's sarcastic voice asked as he hovered with the wind and kept up with me. His white hair was mussed up from the breeze and fell over his eyes slightly, and those bright blue eyes were energetic as always.

"_Yes, _for your information, I am, you freaking frostbite," I huffed, finally reaching the front porch of my own house. I set my soccer bag on the ground and pulled out my key from my backpack, turning the knob and pushing the door open, only to be attacked by a pair of little arms around my waist.

"Lyric! You're back! You're back! Now we can play, right?" Paula asked hopefully, out of her school uniform and in her jacket with pants and boots. She was all ready for this game, and while I was tired from soccer, I gave in to her brig, brown eyes that were stating to get watery.

Sighing, I replied, "Yes, we can play. Let me get changed, okay?" I mussed up her hair and began to walk inside and up the stairs, ignoring my parents, who were both ton their phones talking with their businesses or something or another. They do this all the time, they never have time after school to ask us how our days were, just when dinnertime rolled around we could actually talk to each other. But up until then, it's just either my sister and I, or my homework and I, or my guitar and I, or my soccer ball and I for a couple of hours. Now it's Jack, Paula and I for a couple of hours. What a flipping joy.

I tugged off my socks and shin guards, then undoing the laces to my cleats before getting on some of my Converse and changing into some jeans and I long sleeved shirt. I rushed downstairs while tugging on a beanie and grabbed my jacket on my way outside. The cool air hit my face and I shivered, zipping my jacket up and walking down the steps only to find that my sister and Jack were no where to be found -

_SMACK! _

A snowball blurred my vision, hitting my smack in my face. My nose went to numb and my whole face was wet with snow, and I rubbed the ice from my face, glaring at the assaulters who were laughing and high - fiving each other. I bent down and scooped up a handful of snow and rolled it into a ball, taking aim right at Paula's tummy, and knocking the wind right out of her as she stumbled backwards into the snow. Jack immediately stopped laughing and looked over at me, and I smirked as I rolled some more snow into a another ball. "What's wrong? Scared, Jackie?" I asked, ignoring my sister who lay on the floor holding her tummy and yelling, "Cheater!"

The boy scoffed, "Of what? That hat with those jeans?" He dodged the ball I furiously threw at his direction, laughing all the while as I scooped up some more snow to catapult at him.

"Now it's on, you frostbite!" I yelled as Paula began to run alongside Jack, her hurt tummy long forgotten, giggling at his teasing towards me. She picked up some snow and formed a ball, aiming it at my stomach as revenge but missed, and I instead hit her in the arm. The eight year old glared at me (well, attempted to, she's still too cute to actually glare at someone) and returned the favor by actually nicking me in the leg, catching me off guard. She smiled at something behind me and I whipped around, only to be hit in the face by another snowball by Jack. I fell backwards, and Paula got the jump on me, covering me in snow as if it were sand, giggling all the while. I pulled her leg and she on top of me, and I stopped her attempted escapes by hugging her stomach and tickling her sides until she stopped struggling.

"Stop! Nooo, it tickles! Lyric, stooop!" she laughed, small tears forming at her brown eyes. I giggled and stopped, instead waiting for her to stand back up. I silently grabbed some snow and lifted her hoodie, letting the icy substance fall into her shirt. "AAHH! COLD! COLD! LYRIC, YOU BUTT!"

I stuck my tongue out and laughed triumphantly as she hopped around, trying to get the snow out from her layers of shirts. I didn't notice the being behind me, or the hand that lifted my hoodie and slipped some snow down my shirt. I shrieked and jumped in surprise, turning to see who _dared _to -

"Jack! You little - come here, lemme show you how much I believe in you, jerk!" I yelled as his cheery laughter filled the air around us and he ran the opposite direction, towards the tree in the neighbor's yard. I followed suit behind him, but ended up slipping as he turned the hard snow into ice, the frosty designs painting the ground below me. I flailed and tried to gain my balance, and braced myself for the hard, cold bark that was about to bruise my face when suddenly I ran into a pair of arms that stopped my slide. I looked up and met a pair of porcelain blue eyes, mischief and cheer hidden behind the color. I felt my face heat up and I stuttered out, "H-Hey."

"Hey," he chuckled, helping me stand. "You should be careful. It's pretty slippery around here." I shot him a look, and looked back towards Paula, who was still trying to get the snow out from her shirt.

I called out to her, "Paula! Here, let's get you cleaned up, you muffin," I started to walk towards her, on the snow, now, with Jack alongside me. As I knelt down to her level, she shook off her jacket and I dusted off a few clumps of snow still on the back of her shirt. "Jeez, Paula, you're always getting into trouble."

"It's not my fault! You did it, Lyr! But Jack and me got you good, ha!" she stuck her tongue out at me, and I stood back up. I held a snowball in my hand and I whipped around towards Jack, hoping to surprise -

_SMACK! _

"Lyric, why do you even try?" the spirit asked after he hit my again in the face with a snowball. I grumbled and wiped the melted snow from my face, huffing and turning to stomp away with Paula giggling behind me.

"You're a flipping cheater, you know that? I yelled as I faced him again, ignoring the smirk he was giving me.

I yawned as I stepped into my room, holding a towel around my neck for my wet hair. A good, warm shower really helps after defeat. Paula was fast asleep in her room, after her bath and a bit more playing with her dolls, mom tucked her in and said good night. Collapsing onto my bed, I lazily felt around for the remote to my stereo where my Ipod lay connected, and turned on some tunes. Not too loud, since Paula was in the other room dreaming about unicorns or fairies or something girly and sweet. I sat up and ruffled my hair with the soft, blue towel once more, tossing it into the hamper by the bathroom door. _Well, time for me to hit the -_

_Tap tap tap. _

I glanced towards the window and stared. Jack was outside, hoodie up and tapping the window again.

"Hey." he said meekly after I pulled the window up and the cool wind invaded my room with him.

"Hey," I replied as he stepped in, landing gracefully on the soft carpeted floor. "Why are you here again?"

Jack shrugged. "I was in the neighborhood, and just wanted to stop by…"

"I ran out of ramen."

"Oh…well, then…"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"You know what, I think I'll just leave…"

"Yeah."

I laughed softly at his eagerness to eat ramen again and re-opened the window, watching him hop outside onto the branch across from the window. He pulled his hoodie back up and said with a smile, "That was fun. The snowball fight we had,"

I grinned, then replied, "Yeah, it was, actually. Haven't had that much fun since Paula was born,"

He chuckled, "She's so full of energy! We should have another one soon, though."

"Yeah, we should. Good night, Jack." I yawned.

"Night." and just like that, he was gone with the wind (no pun intended) and flying high. I shut the window, falling into bed and letting the Sandman push me into unconsciousness.

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**Review replies:**

** Ali Camille: DUDE DON'T TALK TO ME UNTIL YOU TAKE ME TO SEE THE MOVIE AGAIN. and thank you, your review is appreciated :)**

** Guest #1: I can't tell you if she'll be a guardian yet, since I have no idea of what will happen, actually. Lol, but my friend gave me a really good idea for this story, so stay tuned is all I can say!**

** Xtraitor: Lol, glad I could make you laugh! Thanks for the review, bro!**

** Emily C: I'll try to update! Happy to know I'm getting people fired up because of this :)**

** Cupcake122: Thanks, broski. I love this story, too! And I'll try to update as soon as possible!**

** Guest #2/ A fan: Lol, I know, I saw that episode and I was like, "Motivation." And thanks for the review, bro!**

** ghostvampirehunter95: Thanks for your review! And I'll update as soon as I can!**

** Cruxis' Kingdom Heart Cheribum: Love that name, dude XD and thanks for your review and favorite!**

** Q-A the Authoress: I'll keep on writin' and rockin', bro. Thanks for your reviews! :)**

** Chuu112: Love that you love the Korean band part :) Thanks for your review!**

** Eri Chan-chan: Lol, how about SIX CHAPTERS?! XD jk, I'm not that awesome. Glad to hear you're entertained, bro, and your review is much appreciated!**


	6. Plug In Baby

**:) Love the reviews, guys. **

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"So, what exactly _is _that?" Jack asked me on the way to school the next morning, choosing not to walk like a normal person and simply floating his way next to me. Then again, Jack Frost isn't exactly _normal. _This morning, after brushing my hair and teeth and splashing some water in my face, Paula started to tell out parents all about him at breakfast. Of course, being the parents they are, they only brushed it off as another one of Paula's imaginary friends, and as for me, they've marked me mentally unstable for going along with her antics. How is talking and seeing a winter spirit crazy? If something's not real, you won't be able to feel it, but you can tell it's true because you can see it. Right?

I sighed and looked over to him, making sure to cover my mouth with my scarf so that nobody would think I was talking to myself. "What's what?"

He pointed to his ears, meaning my ear buds and Ipod connected to it. I looked down at the small rectangular item in my hand and held it up, and he nodded in return. "That. What is it? I've seen a lot of people using those,"

"It's called an Ipod," I replied, pulling my ear buds out of my ears. I tucked them away into the pocket of my black khaki pants and unlocking the screen. "You use it as a phone or as a music player. This one's only a music player, though."

Jack's blank face was his reply and I deadpanned, "A music player is a small metal box that can play whatever music you want and a phone lets you call people, no matter where they are. Where have _you _been all these years?"

A small smile played on his lips as he answered, "I've been around. You know, being _Jack Frost _and all. Delivering snow and ice to the planet."

"About that - why do you do that? I mean, don't you just want to be normal?" I asked as we rounded the corner and stayed close to the road, since the sidewalk ended a while ago. We were almost at the small school, I could see the red banners and giant cross sticking up from the church right next to the school.

"I can't exactly be _normal _if people can't see me. Like I said, you believe in me, so you _can_ see me. Besides, normal is overrated." he smirked at me and I rolled my eyes as I scoffed. We walked/floated in comfortable silence for a while before we came up to the sidewalk of the school, then I had to bid good - bye to Jack as he pouted and waved a good - bye in return. Pushing my scarf downwards so that I could breath, I stepped into the small cafeteria, warm and cozy with some students already here, chatting amongst themselves. I walked past the tables and headed upstairs to the third floor where the sophomore lockers were at. Another school day…

~~One school day later…~~

"Are you guys excited for Christmas?" Krystal asked as she came up to Ifeoma, Reina, Gabriela and I in the cafeteria after school. The best news had come: soccer practice was cancelled for the day due to coach's kid getting chicken pocks! But, there was still a game tomorrow - against a really rich and snobby school on the opposite side of town. Krystal was wearing her red scarf around her neck, a really soft and well - knit one, and had her hair in a side ponytail. One thing I loved about Krystal is that she loves to experiment with her hair, trying on new styles everyday that always come out looking adorable. I envied her long hair, since I had to cut mine off so it'd be short and out of the way for soccer. I'll grow it out when I'm older, and out of soccer for college.

Gabriela was the first to answer, "Yes! No more school for two weeks," she sighed dreamily. Gabriela had been working extra hard this year, all honors classes, since she was new to the school. We became instant friends when we first met, though, along with everyone else in the 10th grade. Vivian introduced her to us since they were friends back in middle school. "And I can finally sleep!"

"Man, Gabriela, you need to join us dumb kids in the regular classes," Ifeoma joked, leaning back in her chair. We were some of the few people who were waiting for their rides - well, I just hung back to hang with these guys for a bit - to go home. Of course, if you're a senior, you can just drive home, but if you're a measly sophomore like me, you have to wait for your mommy or daddy. "Especially Lyric, she's real -"

"Finish that sentence, Ifeoma, I dare you," I said as I popped an M&M into my mouth, punching her arm lightly. I looked over at Krystal and answered her question, "I'm excited, just to get my new guitar from Santa!"

"Santa? Are you serious?" Reina looked at me, with an amused smile on her face. Her long, brown hair was in small curls and cascaded down her back - again, I envy _her _hair, too - and she harbored a small white bow in her hair. I sat up in my chair, pouting.

"Yeah, Santa, Reina, I still believe in him! You have no childhood." Krystal smirked at Reina, holding back a giggle. These people knew I was childish inside, I've been with them for a year, and that's enough to know me. Gabriela shook her head, her Doctor Who mode coming on.

"Oh, Lyric. You poor, poor child. Still stuck in the ways of mystery and wonder." Putting a hand dramatically to her chin, she looked off into the distant florescent lighting that dotted the ceiling, pretending to think.

I popped another M&M in my mouth while also handing some to Krystal who had her hand held out, "That's right, I'm still a kid. In your face, you grown - up."

We sat around and talked about nothing for a while until most of them had left, leaving only Krystal and I waiting for her sister to come pick her up. There were still a few other people I didn't know in the cafeteria, so we weren't completely alone. That'd be creepy if we were the only ones left, with no one around, and anything - ahem, _Slenderman_ - could pop out and eat us. She had on a Korean band named _Teen Top _playing on her phone as we did some of our science homework together.

"An electron has a negative charge and a proton has a positive charge, right?" I asked as I furiously wrote down an answer to the question sheet Mr. Embry gave us as homework. The brunette nodded in return as she took a sip of her water bottle.

"Yeah. And a neutron has a neutral charge," she added, reading for a section of the chapter we were assigned to read as well.

"Right, right…man, I can't wait to get my new guitar. I asked for a blue one," I mumbled as I put down my pencil to imagine my blue electric guitar I wished for. I'd be playing only the coolest songs, _Plug In Baby, Changing, Sometime Around Midnight_, all those good songs that I was introduced to in middle school.

"You really believe in Santa, Lyr?" Krystal asked, poking my arm playfully. I looked over to her and laughed a little, picking up my pencil again.

"Not just him. You know, Tooth Fairy, Easter Bunny, Sandman…Jack Frost," I muttered the last name in annoyance and embarrassment, which she didn't catch, thankfully.

She nodded and replied, "Jack Frost is cool. I've heard of him - he makes snow and ice, right?"

_Not just snow and ice, also frustration and annoyance,_ I thought, but brushed it off and answered yes. Does she believe in him? If she does, than how come she didn't see him yesterday? Maybe she doesn't, and is just talking to entertain me and my childish spirit. Probably that. I took a risk anyway and asked her, "Do you believe in him? 'C-Cause I hear, like, a rumor or whatever, that if you believe in him, you'll see him."

The asian gave me a look that said, "Are you on something? If so, give me some" and said slowly, "Oh yeah? Well, can_ you_ see him, Lyric?"

"Yeah, she can, actually," a smooth voice said from behind me and I tensed, knowing who that voice belonged to. Jack. Of course he snuck in here again, probably to make the hallways slippery and make teachers fall on their faces. I tried to ignore his voice and instead focus on Krystal, who's eyes were wide and was staring straight behind me -

"W-W-Who's t-that?" she shakily asked, pointing to him as he raised an eyebrow at her anxiety. I tried to act cool, and brush it off as a joke and turned around.

"Who's who? Where, Krystal?" I tried to laugh, but it came out more like a cough or stuttering laugh.

Jack smirked and twirled his staff around in his hand casually. "I think she means me, Lyric. The name's Jack Frost, but I think you know since you were just talking about me."

I shut my eyes in frustration - can't he go along with anything? I turned back around slowly and I whispered, "Krys, don't make a scene, just listen, okay -"

"JACK FROST?!" she nearly shrieked, standing up so fast that she knocked her chair over onto the ground, eyes wide and mouth agape.

You know, sometimes I don't even know why I deserve all of this. I'm just a Latin American girl trying to get by in life, I didn't ask for Jack _freaking _Frost in my life, with his perfect, clear blue eyes and snow - white hair, all I asked for was a guitar and a soccer ball, is that so much to ask?

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**Song for this chapter is "Plug In Baby" by Muse.**

**Reviews are very much appreciated since I think I failed my Theology midterm :')**


	7. Mercy

**Hey.  
Hey there. Yeah. Um. So. This is uh, Lyric. Yeah. And Juliette is kinda...kinda scared right now. Cuz, you know, you guys are awesome for folling and reviewing and stuffs, and she feels terrible. BTW, her birthday passed, and she had a quince, so yeah, happy birthday, Juliette. Anyways. This is about you guys. She, like, is really sorry and is too ashamed to show her face...but I guess I'm here. So yeah. Oh, and she's gonna start this new Fanfic, well, a question fic or something, where you can ask me, Jack, and her other OC'S and other characters questions about stuffs...and yeah. So. That's it. Hope you enjoy this new chapter, and yeah. **

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After dragging a kicking and screaming Krystal out onto the patio area that was placed between the church and the school grounds, I sat her down at one of the tables outside, with Jack following suit as he floated outside with us. She was still gawking at the spirit like he was some sort of ancient dinosaur on display, and I had to snap my fingers in her face to get her attention. "Krys! Krys, listen, you gotta stay calm, okay, this isn't what it looks like -"

"Isn't what it _looks like?!_ I'm going crazy! Insane! I _knew _I had ADD, Lyric, I told you, I told you in Chemistry, 'I think I have ADD!' I knew I was right! There are no K-Pop stars that have ADD, Lyric! YG and SM will never let me dance with Super Junior or SNSD! We have to call my parents, a teacher, something, I need to get tested out - !" Krystal would have kept going if I didn't shake her shoulders slightly. Her brown eyes settled onto me and I took a deep breath, trying to calm down my nerves as well. "Lyric, you see him, too, right..?"

"Yeah, Krys, I do, and it's a _pain,_" I said that last part loudly so Jack could hear, who was by the entrance to the church, looking over the designs of the cross and Jesus that were hung up on the walls outside. He looked over at us and rolled his eyes, tapping his staff on the ground in a bored manner. I looked back at Krystal, and continued on, "You're not going crazy, alright? You're fine. Trust me, I thought I was going crazy, too, until Paula could see him."

The color started to return to her face, "Paula can see him, too? But - but why? I don't get it, Lyr, why couldn't the other girls see him in the cafeteria inside? Or anywhere else?"

I decided to let Jack explain that one, and called him over to where we seated at so he could explain it from _his _point of view. He walked over and sat down on the table instead of a chair (only Jack), and started off, acting uninterested in explaining all of this to us.

"Alright, so, I'm Jack Frost. I've been around for a _long _time - about 300 hundred years, maybe, and all in those years, I've learned that for a kid to see you, they gotta believe in you. So, basically, you two believe in me, so obviously, you can see me. Lyric, I've told you this already a hundred times -"

"But, then, how come you're still here if no one can see you, I mean what's the point?" Krystal asked.

Jack blinked those blue eyes at her question, trying to come up with a reasonable answer, "Um, to make places cold, I guess - listen, I don't really know why, either, um, the Man in the Moon doesn't really talk to me much…"

"Man in the Moon?" Krystal and I both asked with piqued interest.

"The moon at night, there's a guy in there, he doesn't say much, at least not to me, and anyways," Jack was talking fast, like he wanted to get this subject out of the way before we could ask anymore questions about this Man in the Moon. "Point is, you two can see me because you believe in me."

Krystal stayed quiet a little while before asking, "So I'm not going crazy?"

Jack and I both shook out heads no, with me lightly punching her arm, "Nah, at least not yet."

She gave me a smile and we both stood up, walking back inside towards the cafeteria. I turned to look back and yelled towards the winter spirit, "I'll deal with you at home, got it?"

He smirked and waved a good bye, then soared off.

"You know, you had Krystal really scared for a minute, Jack," I commented as I walked down the usual sidewalk towards my neighborhood. The sky was a light orange mixed with pink now, as it was about 6 pm as I headed home. After the little explanation with Krystal, she soon after got picked up, actually a little happy that she could see "a totally hot spirit floating around", as she put it. I grinned at her ability to be cheered up easily and packed up my stuff, then headed out. That's when Jack caught sight of me and decided to "walk me home". Not that I minded, actually I kind of liked having someone to talk to besides Paula - he was a really good listener and conversation starter. Plus, I could never get enough of his sparkly blue eyes, they just made me shiver and feel all…tingly inside, and it was a stupid feeling, but it felt nice to have him around. Not that I'd admit it out loud…

The boy next to me laughed, "Why? Not like I popped out and _tried _to scare her," His laugh was seriously going to be the death of me. It just sounded so - so _fun, _so energetic and amused and boyish. I've never heard a laugh like it anywhere, and it made me tingle and made me want to record it and put it as my alarm to wake me up for school.

Too distracted by my thoughts, I ceased to notice the patch of ice that lay on the sidewalk, frozen on a small slice of the pavement. I took a step forward and slid, grabbing the nearest thing, which was Jack's staff and pulled it towards me, squeaking in surprise. My nose bumped into his and then I felt the softest, coldest touch to my lips, making me shiver and blush all at the same time. My hazel eyes met blue and all hell broke loose in my mind.

_I'M - I'M - I'M K-K-K-KISSING…KISSING! JACK FROST! J-J-J-J-JACK FREAKING F-F-F-F-F-FROST! M-Maybe it's not necessarily kissing, o-o-our lips are just t-t-t-touching and oh my God forget this -_

_I'M KISSING JACK FROST!_

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**Song: Mercy by Duffy. **


	8. Time Of Your Life

**I'm so happy I updated. Aren't you? :3**

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For a few moments, as blue eyes stared into hazel, and his pale nose touched my tan nose, a couple of thoughts ran through my mind. Mostly they consisted of, "Holy shit, I'm actually kissing a boy", and others like, "Damn, his lips are cold", or, "Crap, what if someone sees me kissing the air and looking like a retard". But one that really popped out at me was, "He isn't pulling away". And he wasn't. He just kept looking into my eyes, trying to send me a sign, I could feel it, it was like Jack was trying to tall to me, trying to show me something, but I was too distracted by having just been kissed by him. The feeling was something I've never felt before, it was like kissing a snowflake, really, because he was so cold. But I guess you could say I felt a spark, or fireworks, or tingles or shivers— whatever it may be, it felt...

Well, _wonderful. _

But the thought never came across my mind that I might have feelings for the winter spirit. Never, not once...the thought at the back of my mind was always, "He's going to stay 18, and you'll grow up. It can never work. Don't do that to yourself." So I never did do that to myself, I never tried to look at him differently, besides the fact that he looked attractive, I never pictured us together doing anything couple-like. The little reminder was like a barricade, protecting my feelings from getting past and making me hurt myself. I went on fine, treating him as a food friend who teased me a lot, a good guy who likes to play with kids, and just an all-around cool person, never a crush, or a love. I didn't really see that in him, until now, at least. The feeling of his lips in mine, his eyes looking at me— me, the actual me, the little girl who never wants to grow up, who still believes in fairy tales and happy endings and, well, true love. I could tell Jack Frost was seeing all of me, just by peeking into my eyes and taking my first kiss.

After a while of just being paralyzed together, we both jolted away from each other, as if an electric shock went through us. I held a hand to my mouth, my face painted red and I was sure steam was coming off of it. Jack's face was the same, he was actually getting a bit of body heat back by his furious blushing. We both just stared at each other for a while, not believing what the hell just happened between us. Then, he coughed, and held a fist to his mouth, hoping brush off what just happened. I stuttered out a, "Y-Yeah..."

Jack fiddled with his hoodie sleeve, suddenly very interested in th fabric, "U-Um, y-you...better get g-going..."

I nodded, hiking my backpack farther up my back, "Y-Yeah, c-cant keep...keep Paula w-waiting..." We both avoided each other's eyes, and eventually, I turned and started down the sidewalk, and he flew off, wanting to get a million miles away from me, I'm sure. Dammit, Lyric, you just ruined one of the best friendships you've had! You just had to trip, didn't you? Just couldn't watch where the hell you were going! Ugh! Angry thoughts swirled in my head as I walked faster abc faster home. I held back tears, and once I reached the porch steps, I threw the door open and raced upstairs, not even greeting Paula or my parents. The embarassement and sadness was too much to bear at the moment.

I lay curled up in bed, my iPod blasting Guns N' Roses in an attempt to make me forget the day— of course, to no avail. Not even the strums of the guitar or lead vocals of Axl Rose could get me out of this slump. I felt terrible and happy all at the same time. I just kissed, after a few hours contemplating over him, my first crush and might have possibly ruined our friendship. Even I wouldn't be friends with me if I did what I did today. A part of me says it was an accident, after all, the sidewalk was slick and I wasn't aware, bit another part of me says I've lived in Colorado my entire life, I should have known better than to walk without caution. Both are right, but I still can't help but be confused about this whole thing. I'm happy that I finally realized my feelings for Jack, but I'm angry about messing this whole thing up.

I clutched the sheets wrapped around me tighter as I buried my head into my pillow. Why can't this day just be over? Plus, I had a soccer game the next day...I had to be in good shape for it, maybe I could take out my bager and sadness out on the opponent's team. Yeah. That sounds nice, actually. Maybe kick one of their faces by accident, or elbow them a little too hard.

Sighing, I lifted my head up to take my earbuds out, I was getting sleepy anyway. I was lucky Paula didn't bug me about what happened, or I would have said things I know I would have regretted. My parents were busy, as usual, so they didn't really notice my absence at the dinner table tonight. Really, as if kissing the guy you like wasn't wonderful enough, no, your parents have to go and ignore you and your sister...

_ Tap, tap, tap! _

I froze. No. I'm not going to look up, no, I won't, he can't be there, I know he's not there' my mind is just playing tricks on me, cruel tricks that make me even angrier than I already was! I clenched my eyes shut and tried to block out the fact that I even had a window, the fact that I had a room or that I even had a window pane. Or that I knew a boy that could ride with the wind and soar away to any part of the world, with his lovely blue irises.

_Tap, tap, tap! _

I gave up resisting and peeked over to the window, already knowing and dreading what I saw. Jack. He was probably here to tell me that he had to go somewhere, really far from here, for a "while". That's probably it, that's how he'll never have to see me again. That's great.  
Preparing for the goodbye, I get out of bed and walk over to the window, lifting it up and letting the cool night air brush past me. I brushed some brown hair behind my ear and avoid Jack's eyes. He was crouching on the branch of the tree outside my window, and had his staff propped on his shoulder. His windswept hair was in place and he was also avoiding my eyes, and I couldn't blame him. What guy could look at the girl who kissed him by accident and not grimace? I decided to start off, just to get this over with, and not make it harder than it has to be. "...Hey."

"Hi..." He replied, and I stepped aside to let him inside. "Lyric, listen...about today—"

"N-No, Jack, I should be the one saying sorry. I-I...was being clumsy and didn't look where I was going, I wouldn't," I took a pause to hold back my emotions, "be surprised if you just up and left—"

Then, the most unexpected thing that has ever happened in my 15 year old life happened. I never got to finish my sentence, because halfway through, Jack took my face in his cold hands and pressed his lips to mine, catching me off guard completely. My eyes widened, my body stiffened, and I wanted to scream and laugh and cry all at the same time. Jack Frost was kissing me, for the second time that day! I felt— just wonderful, it felt dazzling and amazing, there was no way to explain it to anyone, the feeling was too beautiful. I slid my hands over his pale, freezing cheeks and returned the kiss with an eagerness so difficult to describe, that I just dove right in, not caring if I was a good kisser or not, not caring if this was his frost kiss or not, he'll, not caring if this is a dream or not, I was too happy, and nothing could have made that moment more perfect.

My feelings had transformed into something more right then, something beyond comprehension, at least, something that I couldn't understand.

And I'm confident I could say the same for Jack.

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**It's not over yet! No way, no how. Song for this chapter is "Time of Your Life" by Green Day.**


	9. Kyoto

**Hay! Julie here. So. Another update. And Viva La Vida should be getting one hopefully tomorrow. **

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Ever get tha feeling that you're doing something really bad, and you know it's gonna turn out bad, but you do it anyway?

Yeah. That's how it felt falling for Jack Frost.

While falling for the guy was actually a miracle, since I've never had such strong feelings for anyone before, I knew it was a bittersweet moment when he kissed me for the second time. I knew that he was going to stay young forever, and I was eventually going to grow up and possibly forget about him— then again, who could forget Jack Frost? Is it even possible to forget someone so...attractive and outgoing and, well, perfect? Is it even possible to not agree to go steady with such a liek able guy? Of course, right after he asked me that question, I blushed like a little school girl who had just been called pretty by the boy she likes and agreed, having no idea what I would get thrown into. But, I thought, if its with Jack, then it'll be okay, somehow, that I shouldn't have any worries when I'm with him, because he'd...protect me, I felt it. I knew he'd come to my rescue whenever I needed it, or cheer me up or make me feel...

Well, _beautiful_.

And I loved the feeling he gave me, that feeling of serenity and grace and that mushy, gooey, lovey-dicey stuff that I just couldn't get enough of. That night, after confessing our feelings and watching him light up after me agreeing to stay with him, I knew I couldn't go back to what I called a "normal life". He'd be in my life now, a big part of it, but I felt like I'd get by and come to accept terms with what my life would be like, now.

"Lyric, ball help!"

"Got you!" I called back to one of my teammates, Hannah, a freshman with long, blonde hair and blue eyes. I kicked the soccerball back to her direction and she stopped it, then went back to passing it with another freshman, Sara. I went back to passing with my good friend, Abi, whose full name was Abiaail, but she preferred Abi. She smiled me as I went caught the ball and kicked it softly back towards her, hinting an oncoming remark about my attitude today.

"Well, someone's in a good mood, Ms. Lyric," she chided, catching the black and white ball and switching from one foot to the other to pass it back. We were on the field of a rich, snobby, stuck-up school, who took way too much care of their grass and too much time on their appearance rather than their playing skills. The other tream watched us with hateful glares, obviously fearing the worst: we'd be the victor of this game. Of course, they have every right to be scared of losing; we're just better than them.

I replied back with a sarcastic tone, "Thanks for saying I'm never in a good mood,"

Abi giggled, "Lyr, you're just happier than usual."  
I lightly blushed, "Oh, r-really..."

"Really. Hey, coach is coming," she nodded towards the Hispanic soccer coach and we both stopped passing the ball back and forth, and instead I dribbled it towards coach. Once all of our team was here, he began exlplaining plan for this game:

"Okay, Hannah, with your slightly injured leg, you won't be able to do much, but you can do some. You're a defender, got it? Lets see, uh...oh, Abi, you're a forward, along with lyric. Both of you, work together and try to maneuver the ball away from the other team as much as you can," Abi and I exchanged high-fives as he went on, "Sara, you're defending as well, Fifi is the goalie— and work on those punts!— Paula is on offense, Naudia will be working with Hannah and Sara, Ariel is on offense, Marta will be with Paula and Ariel, and Rebecca, you'll be a sub. I know we don't have a large team anymore, but we'll do what we can with what we've got, alright?"

We all nodded as he held his hand out and we piled our hands on top, "Now let's say a quick prayer. Lord, we ask you to lead us to a win in this match, and we pray that no one gets injured, except for maybe the opposing team. In. The name of the father, the son, and the Holy Spirit, amen."

We all uttered an "amen" and Paual shouted, "FALCONS ON THREE! One, two, three, FALCONS!" We all yelled in spirit and started on our ways towards our positions on the field. It was cold today, as it is every game we play at night, and the lights for the field were turned on and could blind you if you stared too long. As the other girls flooded the field, coach nodded towards us, standing on the sidelines with Rebecca. The referee held his hand up, and in the next second, blew his whistle as loud as he could, and the game began. Abi and I were in opposite sides of the field, and we moved together, as if mimicking each other's movements.

I darted towards a tall brunette who had the ball, dribbling it and aiming to make a pass to her blond teammate, but bam! I came and pressured it off, my feet almost stepping on her goes by "accident", and dribbled it away, kicking it hard to Abi. She dodged a girl who came up from behind her and kicked it to Naudia, her furious track skills paying off in this game. She maneuvered her way towards Sara, but lost the ball when a shorter, black-haired girl came to pressured it off by nearly tripping her. These guys play dirty, huh? I thought to myself as I gave Abi a, "What the hell was that?" look. She returned my look and darted foward, with me following in the same direction on the other side of the field. That girl who had the ball was getting close to our goal, and Paula failed to steal it from her, and she passed it to a teammate who was waiting by the goal. That girl dribbled if around Naudia, who came back for revenge, and then she—

Slid on some...ice?

She fell on her face and lost control if the ball, but never mind that, where did the ice come from? Something in the back of my mind yelled out the obvious answer, but I refused to come to terms with it. It couldn't be, no! It couldn't be—  
But it was.

There he was, snickering at how the girl fell on her face and totally missed her chance at scoring, floating in the air.  
Jack Frost.

I mentally face palmed. What was he doing here?!

"Jack..." I muttered to myself as the referee called a sub in for the injured girl. The opposing team sent out another girl to take her place, and the injured one limped out towards the sidelines, and we returned to the game. I kept a watchful eye out for Jack, and saw him floating by the bleachers on our team's side, entertained by our game, I bet. His eyes followed the ball, and would jump every time someone would almost make into the goal. I rolled my eyes— it was great and wonderful that he was here watching me play, but what if we lose? Then my team will look bad in front of Jack!

By the second half, I was sweaty, despite the cold, and my chest of heaving due to all the running Abi and I did. I wasn't the only one, that team had us playing hard, rough and dirty, using dirty tricks against them and nearly killing some of them in the porocess. Sadly, no one died...yet.

After a short pep talk from coach and draining three water bottles, we were back in the game for the second half. But no matter how many times we tried to score into their goal, they always managed to steal it from us! Marta, our best offensive player, even lost the ball a few times, all because of those dirty, cheap tricks! Abi even fell down a few times because if one girl tripping we so many times, and a few girls shot me dirty looks when I was blocking their moves and interfering with their passes. Not my fault I'm shorter and faster than you.

It all came down to this— the last 6 minutes of the game, and neither of us had scored one single point. We aimed to change that, after bringing it in for a quick walk through of what was going to happen. Abi and I retired to our spots on the field and so did everyone else, ready to finish this. The referee blew his whistle and the game resumed, with one tall Asian dribbling the ball furiously towards the opposite side of the field. Paula went in and, being the senior that she is, nearly toppled the girl for the ball as she cried out a sort of battle cry for the ball. She managed to pry the ball away and pass it to Naudia, who gladly took the ball and dribbled it back to the other goal, but not before passing it to Abi. Abi easily retrieved it, and made away with the ball towards the opposing teams's goal, and swiftly kicking it to me as she dodged an upcoming girl from the front. I acted fast, kicking the ball towards and trying to avoid any girls coming at me, and with the cheers from Abi and Sara, I was motivated even more to make it to the goal and kick it in. I was only a few feet away now, almost there—

"Ah!" I cried out from a girl pushing me back, knocking me to the ground as she made off of the ball back towards our goal. I fell hard, on my cheek and wiped at it, seeing a few scratches on it now, since I just had to fall on a stick with cut off, pointy branches. I pushed myself off the ground and ran back towards the girl, anger pulsing in my veins, and stuck my foot outward to take the ball back, tangling my feet with hers as we both tried to kick the ball away in almost a messy tango. What I didn't notice were the patches of ice popping up under the opponent's feet, and how she was occasionally slipping when she stepped on them. I smirked, maybe Jack isn't so distracting as I thought he'd be. Once she finally slipped in a larger piece of ice, I ran off and dribbled the ball towards their goal, and their goalie got in position, her arms spread out as if ready to catch it any way I kicked it.

I didn't slip on a slippery piece of ice under my cleats, and I didn't freak out when I felt it, either; Jack was helping me to make it into the goal.

"Come on, Lyric!"

I sort of rode the ice, fueled by Jack's new cry of encouragement and my teammates yells and hollors behind me and kicked the ball straight upwards—  
Right above the goalie's head, into the net!

The scoreboard changed it's numbers to 1-0, and the timer buzzed, and that was it! The crowd from our side of the field, which was only a few parents, went crazy! Next thing I knew, my team was toppled over me, all hugging and whooping, jumping up and down at the goal and achievement we just made. I felt great, and I knew our team deserved this victory. Coach high-fived me as the team walked back to the sidelines, and after exchanging kind, gentle handshakes with the opposing team (one nearly spit in my face, and I nearly clawed their eyes out), we were out of there and on our way back to school to get picked up.

I was fluffing my now wet and clean hair with a towel, when I heard the familiar tap tap tapping from my window. My parents were proud of my making the final goal and granted me permission to go to the upcoming winter dance at my school, which I've been mentioning for a while now. Paual was entertained by the bedtime story of my victory, and overall, life was good. I walked over to the window and pulled it up, and was tackled by a pair of surprisingly strong arms. "Lyric! That was amazing out there!" Jack said excitedly.

I blushed to my ears. "I-I-It was nothing, y-you helped me out at the last p-part,"

"Yeah, but the beginning and how you took the ball away from that chick! It was so cool!" His blue eyes were shining even more as he remembered the game and how I handled the situtation. He let go, still holding my hands, though, and gave me a look. I don't know what kind of look, it was a look, though.

I stuttered, "W-W-What?"

He sort of snapped out of a daze. "Oh, nothing. Just that you were amazing out there."

I looked away, "I wasn't t-that good. Besides, I need t-to thank you, Jack. For helping m-me in those last f-few seconds."

Jack laughed, "Lyric, it was nothing! You did all the hard work!"p

I have a small smile. I guess he was a little right, I did do all tha running and cursing under my breath and drinking all that water. I yawned, slightly sleepy from all the action today, school was normal, yeah, but man, that soccer game wore me out.

The winter spirit noticed my yawn, "Oh, yeah, you should sleep," I guess he doesn't really sleep if he didn't sound so confident about saying the word sleep. I nodded and still held one of his hands and he lead me to my bed, ticking me in, sort of. Except, he climbed into bed with me.

My blush reddened, and I stuttered out again, "J-J-J-Jack! W-What—!"  
He silenced my question with a kiss to my Los, and while I was still not used to the whole "kissing" thing, I liked it none the less. Pulling away, my eyes became a whole lot droopier, and I forgot all my past protests and I slowly slipped into sleep, using his arm as a pillow, enjoying the feeling if his hands striking my hair as I slept.

Could life be any more perfect?

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**Song: Kyoto by Skrillex**


	10. A Momentary Trip

**Haaaay guys. sup. how's your day. awesome. so yeah, already at over 50 REVIEWS AND GUESS WHO'S HAVIN A SPAZZ OVER HERE, THIS GIIIIIRL! Seriously, you, yes, you, there, I know you're eating, but listen: you're awesome, keep that stuff up. really. i'm liek learning a japanese song just for you guys. idek why. CHAPTER 10!**

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I could, and I will, tell you that the next few days went by fast and sweet, and while I'm not a very big fan of any kind of sweets, I did like them. Thursday was spent at school, and the whole school apparently heard the news about my winning goal, so I got some high-fives and whoops from Krystal and Ifeoma. The day went as usual, we received little homework, and I was able to finish it before bed, because when I got home, Paula kept me away from my work by urging me to watch every disney movie we owned – "Brave", "The Little Mermaid", "Cinderella", "101 Dalmatians", and the list goes on. After suffering from an overdose of Disney's happy endings, I finally retired to my bedroom and got started on that chemistry homework, which was pretty easy, and for a while, I forgot that I was waiting for Jack to come tapping on my window, like he always does every night. I nearly jumped into bed and almost fell asleep when I heard the tap tap tapping on my window. I instantly woke up, and got out of bed, being careful as to not wake up my parents or Paula, and undid the lock and slid the window pane up. I was greeted by a cool brush of wind and Jack's dazzling smile.

"Hey! Want to see something cool?" he asked me as he pulled his hoodie down, revealing his snow-white hair. I inwardly ignored the bad joke – "Cool" and "Jack Frost" – anyways, I raised an eyebrow at his proposition.

"Cool?" I asked, taking a step back as he hopped onto the window pane. "What do you mean by 'cool'?"

He rolled his blue orbs at my hesitancy, "I mean cool! Like, really cool! Come on," he held his hand out, "Please?"

He knew I couldn't say no to him either way, so I grabbed my checkered jacket from my desk chair and tugged it on, pulled on my Ugg boots over my socks and took his hand. Jack's features lit up and he tugged me outside, landing on the tree branch outside my window carefully. I didn't really know where the heck we were going, but like I said earlier, I trusted Jack, so I decided to get away from life for a while and go with him. Jack glanced around, obviously trying to figure out a way to get me to where ever he wanted me to go if he could basically fly and I couldn't.

"Jack," I interrupted his thinking and he turned to me as an idea popped into my head. "Wait here."

I carefully took a step onto my window pane and back into my room, digging through my closet until I found exactly what I was looking for.

"Nice idea, Lyric!" Jack's laughter filled the air as I pushed off the ground to gain more speed to make this turn around the corner with my old red skateboard. The paint had starting to chip off, but I thought that made it look even better. I could keep up with Jack as I followed his direction as to where we were going, and I really wanted to know. What was he going to show me? Probably snow.

He took a sharp turn to the left, and I held onto a nearby street lamp to keep from swerving in the opposite direction. "Hey, I almost died!"

Jack chuckled and rode the wind in another direction, and I had to crouch and jump over a driveway ledge to avoid crashing. Picking up speed, I almost passed him up, laughing as he noticed and flew ahead of me, challenging me even more. "Is that a challenge, Lyr?" I didn't answer, but smirked in response and jumped over a ledge as we turned the corner and the woods came into view as I sped past Jack, his laughter trailing behind me, and before I knew it he was way past me, dodging tree branches and dropping the piles of snow that lay on them. Luckily, I didn't get hit by any snow, but this wasn't fair, he had the power over freaking ICE for pete's sake! I was just a hispanic girl who liked food!

"Cheater!" I yelled as I stepped off of my skateboard and picked it up to carry as he finally slowed down so we could walk from here. We were deep into the woods now, but I knew my way out of here easily - you have no idea how many times Paula has gotten lost in here - and it was still pretty dark out. The moon had just begun to show and peek its face out from behind the clouds and stars littered the sky, with the slow fall of snow around us. I looked up at Jack, who grinned and planted his feet on the ground next to me, and he took his hand in mine, leading me to whatever he wanted to show me. "So...where are we going?"

The boy didn't answer, instead he said, "You'll see."

After walking through this thicket for what seemed hours, we finally came across the old lake, which was completely frozen over. As expected for this time of year. I gave Jack a confused look and asked, "Is this what you wanted to show me? The old lake?"

"Y-You knew about this lake?" he asked, startled at my knowledge of the lake.

"I've lived here all my life," I replied, "Of course I know about this lake. Paula and I go ice skating here every once and awhile." He hung his head in shame and disappointment, and I suddenly felt bad for knowing about this place. But it wasn't my fault! I knew this place like the back of my hand! Jeez, I wish I didn't know about this place all of a sudden. Well, the kinder side of me came out for a while as I sighed, and instead feigned shock, "Oh my gosh! There's an old lake here? I never knew!"

The winter spirit looked over at me, and I smiled back, which must've boosted his confidence, because he went on, "Well! Obviously, Jack Frost knows about every place on earth that needs some frost! Come along, madam," he took me by the hand towards the ice, and I realized something.

"Wait," I spoke up, "I don't have skates."

Jack pointed to my boots. "No, but you have feet, and legs, right?"

"..Right,"

"So, those are your temporary skates, Lyr!"

"Seriously, you treat me like a kid too much."

He led me onto the ice carefully, but I wasn't too afraid...I knew I wasn't going to fall in, the ice gets really thick this time of year, and I'm sure Jack made sure of that. I was afraid of slipping, though; ice wasn't exactly made of pillows. But the little "waltz" we had was nice, even if it was clumsy and we almost slipped a couple of times, I got to hold his hand all through it, and I did manage to laugh a couple of times...laughing and playing around isn't really my thing, if you haven't already noticed. It's weird, he's the only person who makes me change, like, personality wise. I'm more open and unafraid of things that normally I would be. I don't know why he had that sort of effect on me, and sometimes I wonder if I've ever affected him in some way.

Eventually, we got tired of just going in circles on the ice, so we decided to settle down on the snow (I'm glad I grabbed my jacket) and look at the stars.

"My parents would kill me if they knew I was out here," I said, thinking back to that one time where I snuck out to get a better view of the stars when I was little. Instead of going through my window, I went through the front door, obviously alerting my parents. Mom was pregnant with Paula at that time, too, the shock made her stomach hurt like crazy. But that was also the first time she felt Paula kick in her tummy, and everything I did was forgotten at that moment. "They'd never believe me if I told them that Jack Frost dragged me out here."

"I never dragged you out here," he clarified, "You agreed to coming out here to have some fun for once."

"Well, this was a little fun." I admitted, sitting up to rest on my elbows while Jack stayed lying down next to me, obviously used to the cold. I felt the cold stinging of the snow that was in my hair and I shivered, looking over at Jack, whom I thought was asleep after a few minutes of him just lying there with his eyes closed. Does he even need sleep? I wonder what he dreams about...

I hesitantly poked his cheek, getting no response. Maybe he really did fall asleep on me after all. I wonder if a person can live forever by just sleeping, like eternity lies within sleeping. All of this talk of sleeping made me sleepy myself. I turned to lie on my stomach and looked up at the trees above us, a complete canopy above our heads, blankets of snow covering every branch. My eyes became droopy, and I decided to rest my head on my arms, hoping just to rest my eyes and not fall asleep. "Thanks, Jack." I mumbled into my arms as I closed my eyes to get a quick nap in.

I felt a pair of lips briefly touch my forehead and that's when I drifted into sleep myself.

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**Immortal Bubblewrap: thanks, bro! you know what, this story isn't brilliant. you are. for reviewing. go get yourself something nice. :3 **

**TimeLady945: yeah, midterms suck -_- but eh! you can only move forward, right? thanks for your review!**

**Nausicaa of the Spirits: actually, broski, the reason he didn't say "you can see me?" to krystal is because he already knew she could see him, because when he started talking to her, he wanted to freak her out a little. like Lyric when she first saw him, he didn't ask her "you can see me?" because he's rather make mischief :3 and pitch isn't gonna show up in this story, sorry for misleading you T_T ...I'll have to change the characters.**

**RandomAsRainbows: DUDE YOUR REVIEW KILLED ME STAHP I CAN'T BREATHE (^_^) GO GET AN AWARD FOR YOURSELF and yeah i meant snowball fight lmao**

**Falcrow-42: thank god I was preparing a barricade and getting my army of singing guys to protect me from the angry reviewers :3 thanks girl for sticking around for da story!**

**Night-Fury1: lmao, yea, gotta love Hugh Jackman...personally I like him as Jean Valjean :D**

**cupcake122: ACTUALLY I DID HOW DID YOU KNOW lol yeah I had a cake for meh and a whole buncha cupcakes for the guests. there was non left by the end of the quince. but thaaaaank you for da birthday wish and thaaaaaaaaaaaanks for da review!**

**Stellar-Prime: thanks! you know what i love? your review. keep that stuff up. yes. and gotta love da fluff.**

**Ali-Camille: STUT UP AND GO GET ME MIDNIGHT TICKETS TO IRON MAN 3 PEPPER GOSH and thanks for da review.**

**Dawn: i officially love you too! *rainbows***

** .Singer: d'aw well i'm cooing over how awesome Les Miserables was lmao. Thanks for da support broski!**

**Godsabove18: lol. nah girl don't have regrets, live yo life! and glad i made you WAY too happy :)**

**Q-A Authoress: our saras must be the same person. INCEPTION thanks for the review girly :D**

**Tbird12355: lmao yeah that's how it felt when i was in soccer earlier in da year. people were just at each other liek...liek thor at poptarts. that's how intense it was. thanks for yo review!**

**SONG FOR DIS CHAPTER THAT YOU SHOULD GO TOTES CHECK OUT SERIOUSLY BEFORE I MAKE YOU: A Momentary Trip by Gumi**


	11. Do Ya Thing

**yay! updates! and guys...sh!t's about to go down. serious stuff. **

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~3 years later~

Beep! Beep! Beep! Bee -

"Ugh, I get it..!" I grumbled to myself as I shut the alarm off that was next to my bed, its loud beeping crushing my head at 6:30 am in the morning. I cover my head with the covers even more, not wanting to leave my warm cocoon that I made with several bedsheets. I felt like one big cinnamon bun, warm and cozy and sweet-smelling. I hear a knock at my door and then a slow creak, and I knew who it was by the smell of syrup and burnt pancakes emitting from her clothes. Paula's been cooking, again.

"Lyr, get up! It's time to go to school!" Her chipper voice said as she ran over to my bedside, happy as usual. I peeked out from my covers and winced at the sunlight coming through my window, burying myself further into my covers. I shook my head and mumbled an excuse not to get up. Paula crossed her arms over her aproned chest and tapped her foot against the carpet, trying to imitate mom's angry look. I turned away from her, and instead tried to get back to sleep. I was just getting comfortable and starting to snooze when I felt Paula's weight suddenly topple over my stomach, and I gasped for breath instantly, shooting out from my cocoon to glare at the 11 year old. She had one of those innocent smiles on her tan face, her hair in her usual pigtails and wearing her school uniform.

"Paula!" I wheezed, pushing her off of me. "Stop doing that!"

The younger girl hopped off my bed and skipped to the doorway. "Breakfast's downstairs~!" I rolled my eyes as she closed my door and I ran a hand through my now shoulder-length hair. Stretching my arms upwards, I swing my legs over my bed and stand up, walking to my small closet to dig around for my school uniform. After tugging on my black khakis, white dress shirt and red vest, I look under my bed for my Sperrys, not remembering where I left them after school yesterday. My room remained a mess all throughout high school, with random things strewn about, stuff like cups and ramen noodle bowls (thanks to Jack), dirty and clean clothes, and different pairs of converse. Finally finding my Sperrys underneath one of my skirts that I use for mass, I laced them up and made my way to the bathroom to brush my teeth and wash my face, plus brush my hair.

I grew my hair out these years, for random reasons, like people telling me I'd look good with longer hair, or Paula needing hair to practice braiding besides her own, and Jack imagining how I'd look with long hair and saying I'd look cuter than what I was. I really only grew it out for him, since he always does nice little things for me, ever since I was 15. I dried my face with a blue towel and headed downstairs, grabbing my backpack from the kitchen table and looking over how well Paula made breakfast - which was her usual, pancakes and bacon. At least she made the bacon crunchy, but she had a tendency to burn the pancakes until they looked a deep brown or just completely black. I tried to aim for the brown ones and leave the black ones for dad out of love, of course. Paula beamed up at me as she flipped a pancake. "What do you think?" I took a bite out of one that she had set for me on a plate, syrup and butter drizzled over it and swallowed.

"Next time let it cook for less time, kiddo," I replied as I finished it off and threw my trash away. "But they taste awesome."

I yelled bye to my parents, who were getting ready, and waved to Paula as I set out for school. At least it was Friday today. When I reached the usual corner by the neighborhood, I felt that waft of cold air send shivers up my spine as I zipped up my jacket, turning down the volume on my iPod so I could greet Jack. "Well, hello, frostbite."

"When will you stop calling me that? I'm not a frostbite, I'm more of a snowflake or something awesome like that," the winter spirit commented as he walked in step with me, twirling his brown staff in his hand. He had a hand in his jacket pocket, which was weird, since he usually walks with both hands holding his staff instead of just one. Being the observant person that I was, I dared to ask him what was up.

"Hey, Jack,"

"Hey, Lyric,"

I smiled. "What's in your pocket?"

His eyes widened for a split-second before he covered it up. "Pocket? What pocket? Oh, this pocket, well, my hand felt a bit cold t-today, so you know -"

"You really can't make up a better excuse than your hand being cold?"

"E-Excuse? What excuse? I seriously have no idea what you're talking about!"

"Oh, I guess someone won't be joining me for ice skating this afternoon. And maybe some kissing."

That got him. He sighed (adorably) and stopped walking, and I followed suit. He pulled out a small snowball that was hardened by his powers, and he held it out to me. I looked from it to Jack curiously, not getting the message. "Take it. Wait till it melts."

I took it carefully, the cold stinging my hands, but I ignored it. The snow slowly melted away from my body heat and once it totally melted away, there, sitting on my hand, was a small, hard snowflake, as if it were carved from ice, and it was tied to a black string. I held it up by the string, admiring how the snowflake shined with the sun. I was at a loss for words, really, this is the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me, not counting the blue guitar I got from santa when I was 15. I loved it, i loved every part about it, I just felt a special connection with this small accessory. I looked from the snowflake to Jack, and just held my mouth agape. He chuckled, saying, "Flies will get in there if you keep your mouth open like that."

"Jack, this is just...I love it. I truly love it, thank you, so so much," I said in awe, my eyes still on the snowflake. I couldn't wait to wear it, have it around my neck to show off to everyone.

He blushed slightly and flashed a shy grin. "No problem. It didn't take that long, it's just I felt like I wanted to give you something. Since you know, today's the -"

"First day we met, I remember," I finished warmly, trying to hide my blush with my scarf.

Jack chuckled again, "I didn't think you'd remember."

I lightly punched his arm, laughing. I asked him to tie the necklace around my neck. To which he agreed. I shifted my hair to the side so he could get a better angle to get it around me. He stepped back and I asked shyly, "How's it look?"

His blue eyes scanned me slowly. "Beautiful."

My face grew hot and I looked away, starting to walk again and get away from all of the lovey-dovey feels. Jack laughed and caught up to me, starting to talk about something else to get my mind off of this.

"Hey, don't forget your lunch," I reminded Ifeoma as we walked towards our lockers, except she was going straight to the cafeteria downstairs instead of her locker to get her lunch - she's been doing this since freshman year. Good thing I always remind her, or she'd starve herself everyday. The darker-skinned girl smiled and remembered, thanking me as we reached our lockers.

"Lyric, how do you always remind me everyday -"

"Since freshman year? I don't know. I've been hanging around you too much. I know you too well," I joked as I grabbed my lunch and waited for her to grab hers. We took the stairs and pushed the doors open to the cafeteria, the welcoming smell of cookies and baked potatoes and tons of other fat foods dancing around in the air. Ifeoma went to the microwaves to reheat her leftovers while I spotted Krystal and Vivian already at the table, chowing down on the cafeteria's lunch of the day: egg rolls and rice, with a side of vegetables. I set my things down and greeted the two, starting to unzip my lunchbag. Krystal's hair grew longer as well, and she dyed the tips a light orangish color, since she was trying to imitate a K-Pop star's hairstyle. I think her name was Hyuna or something like that, she was from Gangnam Style. Vivian became a bit taller, but still shorter than the rest of us, and actually she cut her hair shorter. It looks really good, it frames her doll-like face very well. Basically, everyone got taller and fuller (not fat, but their curves were...well, curvier) and myself included, you could say. I still wasn't as tall as Jack, but only because his hair was a bit taller than mine.

"Hey, aren't some St. Thomas guys coming over to sell their rugby tickets?" Gabriella asked once everyone had arrived and were eating. I looked over to the side of the cafeteria, where the bulletin boards were and a small table with two guys were seated, a signup sheet and box of money set up on the table. "Oh, yeah. They are. Are any of you going?"

We all scoffed. No one went to those games except for the "in-crowd", people like Hannah, Naudia, Angelle, Syan and Carolina. They were really nice people, but they were just the type to go to the boy's school. Though, Syan is extremely funny, along with Hannah. I suddenly remembered my French test as I bit into my peanut-butter and jelly sandwich, cursing under my breath after I swallowed. "I'll be right back, I need to get my french notes."

I grudgingly walked up the stairs, not looking forward to studying french terms during lunch. It's not like I need to know how to say things like, "Il/elle cherche et trouve un hotdog!" or, "Elle aime voyager avec son chapeau de pirate!" Don't ask, our french teacher is just a child at heart. I stopped at the second floor and found my locker, put in the combination and grabbed my french notebook and book, and started on my way, rubbing my eyes from lack of sleep. I was really sleepy, I just wanted to teleport back to my house and wrap myself up in my covers again and be a cocoon again. Maybe when I come out I'll be prettier, like a caterpillar to a butterfly. I yawned. Just a few more hours, Lyr, you could make it -

"Ow!"

"Oof!"

I rubbed my nose, jeez, what did I hit? A brick wall in the middle of the freaking hallway? I looked up to what I ran into - and _damn._

_Hot damn._

_He was gorgeous._

I didn't know who he was or what he was doing here, but all of a sudden, my face burned and I felt self-conscious, I just wanted to crawl under a rock and hide. My mind went blank and I couldn't make out any other word besides, "Umm..."

The guy I ran into was my age, probably. He was very tall, with tan skin and a bit of stubble under his chin. He had short hair, not exactly a mop, but it looked fluffy and was a brilliant dark brown. He was in the St. Thomas uniform, and if I may say so myself, it looked amazing on him. He was rubbing his chest, probably where my nose collided harshly with it. He stood up quickly, seeing that I was on the floor. He extended his hand, and he spoke finally, "Sorry, are you okay? I wasn't watching where I was going."

That australian accent, though! It filled my ears, caressing my senses and making me go numb. His eyes were a bright green color; it reminded me of fresh grass and poppies and lilies, and just every flower you could think of. One big field of imagination and...hope, somehow. When I didn't answer or take his hand, he asked again, "Um, hello?"

I shook my head, snapping myself out of my daze. "Oh, uh, I-I'm sorry," I stuttered, taking his hand and noticing how warm they were. Jack's hands were always so cold. "I-I wasn't watching where I was going e-either...um, m-my name's Lyric."

The guy smiled easily, setting off butterflies in my stomach. "I'm Aster, nice to meet'cha, Lyric."

Aster. The name rand in my ears a couple of times before I tucked it away in my head. "N-Nice to meet you, too, Aster. Um, what are you doing on the second floor?"

Aster blinked before remembering what he was doing here in the first place. "Oh, sorry mate, I was just chatting with a teacher here. I'm with some other guys selling rugby tickets,"

I nodded, "Oh, you go to St. Thomas?"

"Yeah. And I'm guessing you go here? Or are you just a visitor dressed like a student?"

I laughed softly, already liking his sense of humor. I tucked some brown hair behind my ear, starting up conversation again as we walked downstairs, my french notes in hand. I found out he's from Australia, and just started going to school this year. He was eighteen already, in his senior year like me, except I was seventeen going on eighteen. He was a smart-alec, but he seemed so enthusiastic about everything he said. I sort of...liked it. A lot.

A thought in the back of my mind kept yelling out one name, over and over. "Jack! Jack! Jack!" and I had to listen, because we were still..."together". But a new thought popped in my head - Jack is eighteen, I'm seventeen, what will happen when I'm nineteen? Twenty? Here's a nice guy, who ages like other people. My mind was just messed up, all my thoughts were jumbled up together. I hated it, and I just wanted to keep talking to Aster.

I hoped back then that nothing would go wrong. That everything would remain the same. Aster is just a guy, just a new friend. Jack is still the one for me, still and always will be there.

Right?

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**yea. so tell me what you think! really, review! ^_^ I love making drama...oh! and tell me who you think Aster is! Song for this chapter is: Do Ya Thing by Gorillaz ft. Andre 3000 and James Murphy!**


	12. Empire AntsTo Binge

**did you know? Lyric was originally supposed to be an OC for an Avenger's fanfiction, and her love interest would have been Bruce Banner (AKA the Hulk), and she was supposed to be more sarcastic and a bit more arrogant. But then came along Rise of The Guardians, and yeah. **

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"...and this is another one of their songs, personally, my favorite,"

"...hm, sounds sad. What's it about?"

"Well, it's a bit complicated, it's, um...the band isn't real. It's sort of made up characters, like the one singing is named 2D, and then the guitarist is named Noodle, and the bassist is Murdoc, and the drummer is Russel. I mean, real people make the music, but," I smiled amusedly at Jack's confusion as I finished, "they just make up a sort of story. In this one, the guitarist dies in a helicopter attack on her island."

His appalled face sent me into a fit of laughter. "W-Why would they do that?"

I shrugged, "She was an experiment in Japan, so they wanted to kill her off. But don't worry, in another song she comes back. She's 23 now."

So, here we were, Jack and I, just in my room, home alone since my parents wanted to take Paula out for some movie she had wanted to watch, some kiddie thing. Since there was no blood or action involved, I suggested that I stay home and "finish homework" - which equaled just hanging out with Jack for the rest of the night. So, I took it upon myself to show him every notable band in the history of rock and roll, and we were currently on Gorillaz, sitting Indian style on my bed, watching the music videos. They're a personal favorite of mine, next to The Eagles. After showing him the song "El Manana", I moved onto the next best song they have, "Feel Good Inc."

"What's this one about?" Jack asked as the beginning bass riff started. "Murdering more children?"

"No," I replied, smiling. "It's...I think about being trapped by the things you make. Because, see, there's this guy, the singer, and he's trapped in this tower named 'Feel Good Inc.', and he sees an island with a windmill on it, and he wants to escape but he can't because he's, well, trapped. And, in the end, he's just defeated and stays in the tower. The guitar part is my favorite, I learned how to play a couple of years back."

He put on those big, blue puppy eyes and I caved, getting off the bed to fetch my guitar from my closet. Jack's always liked the fact that I could play guitar, I guess it fascinated him or something. I offered to teach him once, but he declined, saying, "I have a talent, and that's obviously having a good time." I slid the guitar strap over my shoulder and tuned the instrument, making sure its notes reached all the right places and didn't crack. Jack eagerly looked on, shifting to lie on his stomach instead and resting his head on his arms. I cleared my throat and began strumming, only slightly singing along to the lyrics:

"Windmill, windmill, for the land

Turned forever, hand in hand

Take it all in all your stride

It is ticking, falling down

Love forever, love is free

Let's turn forever, you and me

Windmill, windmill, for the land

Is everybody in?"

"You have the best voice," Jack commented dreamily, which made my cheeks burn up and I quickly looked away, coughing as I started to remove my guitar strap from my shoulder, until he stopped me, "Wait, play another!"

I sighed and asked which one, to which he replied whichever I wanted, and so the rest of the night went...well, that and a little kissing. Okay, a lot. We're eighteen! What did you expect us to do, spend all night just talking about our feelings and sharing secrets like middle school girls? We were (technically) adults by that point - well, he was always the adult, I was barely an adult. Plus we knew how to kiss by then. Anyways, we kissed, I sang, played and then we just fell asleep, curling up into each other, comfortable and in bliss. Maybe a few hours into the night, I woke up from a weird dream. Of course, I wasn't that superstitious, and I knew I shouldn't have worried about it, but I did. In the dream, there were about five figures, one burly and big, one had these sort of wings, and could not stay still, one was short and looked friendly, another one had ears on top of its head, sort of like a rabbit, and the other had a staff, like Jack - okay, a lot like Jack, and was just talking to the others, sort of arguing. This was all blurry, their faces were dark and smudgy, so I couldn't make out any faces. Then, the scariest part was this black...sand suddenly slithering its way towards them, just sneaking up on them and striking the fluttering one, then the shortest one, then the rabbit one, then finally the largest one. The only one left was the figure who looked like Jack, and this new figure, tall, lean and menacing-looking. The dream ended and I opened my eyes, just laying there, breathing a bit heavily. What the hell was that? I had no flipping idea, and I was about to wake Jack, until I saw his sleeping face. He looked so peaceful and calm and plain adorable so I decided against it.

Instead, being the awkward potato I was, I just watched him, trying not to look like a creeper. I'm no vampire, I don't find it "fascinating" to watch him sleep, I find it cute. The way his chest rises whenever he takes a breath, how he sometimes makes little sniffly noises, or sometimes how his expression changes in his sleep. Once I caught him smiling like a dopey idiot when he took a nap in my bed one afternoon. Not that I minded, of course. I brushed some snowy hair from his eyes, and he scrunched up his nose, then relaxed again. I remembered when we first met, how he had scrunched up his nose when I didn't believe he was Jack Frost, and I held back a laugh. Was he dreaming about that? Jeez, what a sap...

Carefully, I untangled myself from his grasp and made my way downstairs to get some ramen, because I knew he'd be hungry when he woke up. My parents think I'm the one going through all the ramen because of Jack, now. I feel obligated to tell them it's not me, it's my boyfriend and to see him you have to believe in him. They'd ship me off to boarding school in a heartbeat. Yawning, I reached into the pantry to get the instant-soup bowl when the doorbell rang. Part of me panicked, the reasonable part of me, told me to not answer and go upstairs. The other half just said "Go get it and tell them to leave", so I did just that. I was only in some sweatpants and my Guns n' Roses t-shirt, so when the chilly air hit me I shivered. "Yes...Aster?"

What was he doing here? He looked just as surprised as I did. Well, I was more "yay" surprised than "aw man" surprised. I brushed some hair from my face and blinked again, making sure it was him and not my imagination. "What are you doing here?"

"I should ask you the same thing," he chuckled, and added, "I just moved into the neighborhood, actually."

I squealed inwardly. Aster had moved into the same neighborhood? YES! I mean, that's cool, we could hang out and stuff. Yeah. I gave a smile and leaned against the door, forgetting about the cool air for a minute. Instead I said jokingly, "That still doesn't explain why you're at my house."

Aster said, "My mum said to greet the neighbors, so that's what I'm doing," he grinned. Dammit, his grin was adorable.

I don't know how long we just stayed like that, smiling at each other, until I heard a noise from upstairs and knew it was Jack. I had to come up with an excuse quick! "Well, nice to know we're in the same neighborhood. I'll talk to you later, yeah?"

"Oh, um, actually," he pulled out a scrap of paper and scribbled a number on it. A number. His number. His number. Jesus, Mary, Joseph in a stable. Aster handed it to me and I took it, my eyes scanning over the number over and over. I looked up and he gave a sheepish grin, saying, "If you ever need or want to, um, talk, there's my number. If-If you need to, you know. Or want to. You know, I should just get going..."

I gave a laugh and waved bye, closing the door behind him and I read over the number again and again. This was fantastic. Amazing. Awesome. I folded up the paper and pocketed it, remembering Jack. I quickly went to the kitchen to cook some ramen for the both of us, hoping he didn't hear any of what just happened. Then, a cool breeze hit me as I set the water boiling on the stove, and I didn't have to turn around to know who it was. Sitting at the counter, I remarked, "I see you're awake."

"Mm-hmm," he replied, still sleepy. He yawned, "Who was at the door?"

Don't let your voice falter, Lyric! "A friend. He, uh, just moved into the neighborhood and goes to the boy's school a few blocks away from ours."

"That's cool," he said as he leaned against my shoulder. I giggled a bit, catching that joke again. "I didn't mean that as a joke that time."

Laughing, I said, "Really? I guess that's cool."

I couldn't keep my mind from drifting to my pocket. That number was just a thorn in my side, begging me to add to my contacts list already. Thank God Jack didn't hear us talking.

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**there was actually two songs for this chapter, from the beginning to the part Aster is at the door is "Empire Ants" by Gorillaz, and from where she's talking to Aster to the end is "To Binge" by Gorillaz. I'm going through a Gorillaz phase (ahh 2D! He's the biggest cutie out there).**


	13. The Gambler

**I'd like to thank okamigrl2013 for her review . It made my day . Along with all the other lovely reviews ! XD**

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"Jesus Christ, Lyr, who the hell do you keep texting?" Gabriella asked one day after school when we were lounging around, just being seniors. It was Gabriella, Vivian, Krystal, Ifeoma and our other friend Miranda sitting out in the courtyard, eating some leftover velvet cake from the teacher's banquet earlier. I looked up from the millionth text from Aster and blushed, locking my phone and setting it on my lap. "They can't be more important than cake."

Ifeoma made a face, eyeing the cake disgustedly. "Um, Usher is more important than cake," She is the first person I know that doesn't like cake. Any kind of cake, she won't eat! Not even pie! Sometimes I wonder how she's friends with the rest of us. "And Lil Wayne is way more important than cake."  
"Man, Lil Wayne can't rap," I said, taking another bite of cake and watching her reaction amusedly. "All he does is talk slowly, and people think that's rapping."  
"Damon Albarn can barely sing!"

"Shut your face, his voice is like ear sex!"

We stopped after that, instead just laughing at our stupid arguments. My phone buzzed again and I looked down to see Aster's name and a new message. It's been a couple weeks since hes given me his number, and since then we haven't stopped texting each other. We haven't hung out or anything, since its around midterms, we just have been texting each other nonstop. I have to say, my parents are shocked that I've been texting a guy, since I've never been in contact with the male species for a while now. The guys at St. Thomas were always jerks, just coming after us for the skirts and legs. I know my old friend Syan, who left after freshman year, had said something about not even bothering with them and how they were stupid guys who didn't know how to get a girl. The only exception would have to be Aster, of course. I'm surprised a nice guy like him even goes to St. Thomas.

"Lemme guess, Lyric," Miranda started after she finished her peice of cake, "It's a _guuuy_!"

Damn, now they won't leave me alone. "He's just a friend, Miranda—"

"I knew it! It is a guy! What's his name? Where's he go to school?" As expected, the whole table was now interested in my personal life. I sighed and set my phone down, forgetting about texting Aster back for a while. They weren't gonna leave me alone for a while.

"His name is Aster, he's from Australia and goes to St. Thomas." I said, short and to the point. He was just a friend...a friend who always texts me and makes me laugh and says we should hang out sometime but I always never have time because I'm with Jack. Everyone at the table sighed dreamily and slumped back in their chairs, going for more cake.

"An Australian guy..." Vivian sighed.

"A St. Thomas guy!" Krystal added.

"He's just a friend..." I said quietly as I quickly texted Aster back. "Nothing else."

Looking back on it, I wish I actually meant it.

Midterms came finally, and while we were seniors and everything didn't really matter anymore, we (well, I) still tried our best and studied like crazy for each exam. My college application was due soon, and I couldn't afford to let one bad grade on my résumé. I wanted to become a doctor and an musician on the side, composing songs for the guitar mainly. My parents frowned upon the idea of being a musician, but once I told them I was also going to be a doctor, they seemed content. A doctor will get me money, and being a musician won't— that's what they always tell me and have always told me since I learned how to play the guitar. It bugs me to no end.

Once the last midterms was done, our winter break started and we were free for four weeks! We had Christmas and New Years to spend with our families. I wonder what I would get this Christmas, since I didn't really make a list or anything for Santa. All I know was that I wanted an amp for my guitar, some more guitar picks, and maybe a few clothes. Can't really dress in shorts all the time when you live in Colorado. So, here I was, just lounging around at home, with the Christmas decorations all hung up and everything, watching a movie with Paula. It was another Disney movie, of course, she was in love with Disney and Pixar movies. Our parents were at work and I was left with her to do nothing but probably eat junk food and play whatever it was she wanted to for the whole four weeks we were off of school.

My phone buzzed. The only good thing was that I could text Aster all day long. Jack was out doing his snow things around the world, so I was able to text him without feeling guilty. I shouldn't have felt guilty, Aster was just a friend! Just a friend. Who was also gorgeous. An funny. Anyways, I read his text message, which nearly made me spit the hot chocolate I was drinking out. "Do you want to go out sometime?" How can a single, little phrase make my cheeks burn and my heart leap? I suddenly felt jittery and wanted to just jump around, but managed to answer, "Sure!" Sure? Sure? That's the best I could come up with? Ugh, he's probably gonna change his mind and forget about it now! Another buzz a few seconds later, "Cool! Is tomorrow a good day for you? Around 6? I can pick you up."

_Am or pm?_ I mentally face palmed and ignored the stupid side of me as I answered cooly, "Yeah, that works! Thanks, Aster." _Thanks for what? Picking_ _you up? You sound like you can't drive_! Again, I ignored the panicky part of me and instead smiled like a dope at the fact Aster just asked me out on a date. Could it be considered as a date? Or maybe he's inviting friends? Yeah, he probably invited friends. So it wouldn't be awkward! He's smart like that, he wouldn't just ask me out like that...

He didn't invite friends.

While I wasn't too happy about it, I wasn't extremely disappointed with it, either. I did feel guilty on the other hand, because I told Jack it was more of a "friends" thing, not really a "it's just my semi-crush and I together, alone, for who knows how long" thing. Man, I just wanted to tell him the plans were changed, but how? He doesn't have a phone or any way to contact him. Maybe he'll understand, maybe he'll just forget about it. Yeah, he'll forget about it, he definitely will.

Aster looked...handsome would be an understatement. He looked amazing, even if his outfit was so simple: dark blue jeans, black converse, gray jacket over a simple black t-shirt. Gray suited him very well, and I had to pull my eyes from his outfit to his green eyes once I made it outside on my front porch. My mom and Paula had tried to help me with my outit for my "first date", which was a vain effort on their parts. I don't want to look too girly at all, in not into ribbons and bows and pink, and it wasn't even a date! So, I decided on a dark teal sweater over a black spaghetti strap shirt, with some black skinny jeans and my teal converse. I grabbed a black scarf from my mom's room and my black beanie from my room and was out the door, both my mom and Paula wishing me luck while my dad just eyed Aster, checking for any bad signs. I'm guessing he found none, since he just nodded as I looked back and waved bye to them. Aster's face brightened up as I walked towards him and his car. _His_ car. It wasn't an SUV or anything expensive, but it was a car! A simple black Honda with a nice interior. I felt my heart beat faster as I made my way down the drive and towards him, and he straightened up once I was in front if him and his car.

"Hey," he said, his accent lacing that one word and making me shiver. It was the cold, it had to be the cold making me shiver, not Aster's green eyes on me or his dazzling smile. "Lyric. Ya look nice."

He said that with his smile and I felt a boost in my esteem all of a sudden. "T-Thanks, Aster. You look pretty nice yourself."

He grinned and opened his car door to let me in. I thanked him and sat down inside, admiring the interior if the car. It was clean, and smelled like...well, Aster. A mix of grass, rocks and a bit of sweetness, like flowers. He smelled like nature, basically.

The ride to wherever it was we were going was nice, not awkward at all. He kept the conversation going and made some jokes here and there, keeping me from feeling awkward or uncomfortable. Finally, we stopped outside a pizza parlor, and my stomach growled. Aster opened my door and I stepped outside, being greeted by the cold air and the smell of hot pizza. Grinning, I looked over to Aster and we stepped inside, grateful for the warm inside and sight of hot, cheesy pizzas on tables. People didn't even notice us as we stepped inside, except for a waitress who was waiting for any new customers. She gladly lead us to a table and had us seated, menus in hand. Of course, I knew what I wanted, and that was one pepperoni pizza hit out the oven. I sounded like such a five year old but it was pizza!

"So what are you getting?" Aster asked as he scanned the menu.

"Pepperoni!" I answered happily. "And you?"

"Pepperoni," we laughed softly, and decided to get one big pepperoni pizza to share. Once the waitress got back with our drinks, she left again to place our order, which left us alone to chat again. His green eyes met my hazel ones and I rubbed my freezing nose, trying to think of a topic to talk about.  
"So how'd midterms go?" I asked finally, taking a sip of my root beer.  
Aster sighed and replied, "Well, let's ust say I'm glad it's my last year of high school." I snickered and pushed some hair from my face. His smile was so gorgeous! It made me feel tingly again, the only kind of tingly I felt around Jack. Was that bad? Of course it was, but at the moment, I didn't care. Aster kept me from thinking about important things and I liked it, to be honest. Sometime during our conversation our pizza arrived and we eagerly thanked the waitress and began to chow down, the cheese being extra melty because of the freshness. It had to be a sin for food to taste this good— imagine if pizza was the body of Christ instead of regular bread? I'd gladly go to church every Sunday and during the week for that. I asked Aster about it and he started laughing as he bit into his pizza, and I instantly felt awesome for making him laugh. He had a nice laugh, his accent must do something to it to make it sound so attractive. I took a slow bite into my slice of pizza and reveled in the beautiful taste.

"Thanks for dinner, Aster, it was really nice," I said after we left and were walking down a small sidewalk towards the fountain in the middle of town, passing by some shops on the side. If was his idea to just go for a walk in town after eating, just to talk some more. He left his car parked in the lot for the pizza parlor, so we'd have to walk back to the place to drive to my house.  
He shook his head and replied, "No, thank ya, for wantin' to go with me in the first place," Grinning, I shoved my hands in my pockets as we saw the fountain up ahead in the middle of town; the building around it decorated by bright lights and small Christmas trees placed outside each store. This town really knew how to clean up for Christmas, especially the fountain: it was nicely decorated with bright, twinkling lights, the water slowing sprouting from each spout into the pool below. Just as we reached a shop right across from the fountain, I felt something cold on my nose and looked up, seeing—  
"Snow!" I laughed as I held my hand out to feel it on my fingers, the cold not bothering me at all. It melted through my sweater sleeve and onto my skin, instantly wetting my arms and hands. Aster looked up as well, chuckling at the coincidence that it had to be snowing on this..thing we were on. It wasn't a date, no sir. Anyways, we stayed under the store's awning, waiting for the snow to subside so we could get back to his car. Then, Aster said something that made my heart stop.

"Um...Lyric, look up," I dared to look up, and instantly felt my cheeks burn up, along with my whole body.

Mistletoe.

_Right_ above our heads.

Life loves me, doesn't it?

We both looked at each other, confused as to what to do next. We knew what the tradition was, but would we actually do it? I could get in my tippy toes and just do it, or he could lean down and just—

He did it. He had the guys to actually lean down and do it, lean down and kiss me straight on the lips. I didn't even register it was happening until I felt warm mess on my lips and hand come up to cup my cheek.

Well.

I was already screwed over, so why not just completely mess my mind up? I held my hand over his on my cheek and reached to hold his other hand, intertwining my fingers with his.

Yeah, I knew this was gonna go downhill, like a sled just thrown down the hill, tumbling and turning. I knew I would regret this really bad and probably hate myself forever for this.

But I didn't care, because I felt amazingly at peace at that moment because of Aster.

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**yes ... you hate me now ... Hehe ! Well, lease drop a review, doesn't hurt to yell at me through a review, because a review is a review ! :3 thank you for all you lovely followers and the lovely favorites this story has received, I truly appreciate every one ! Song for this chapter is "The Gambler" by Fun !**


	14. Sometime Around Midnight

**due to popular demand - another update the next day ! I slaved myself over this chapter, so enjoy it ! :3**

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Remember when Jack kissed me?

Yeah...those were the times.

I'm joking.

I won't lie, though, at the time, I thought it was perfect. When I was fifteen, sixteen, seventeen - I thought I'd stay with Jack forever. The Jack Frost. I remember when I first met him, back when Paula still believed in Santa and the Easter Bunny, back when she still played outside in the snow with Jack and I. Now, all she did was stay inside and do boring things - she was eleven now. She sort of grew up just a little bit.

And, I guess you could say I sort of grew up. I still believed in fairy tales and things like that, I just didn't...

Well. You know.

I wasn't going to stay eighteen forever. I knew he would, but I wouldn't. You could say I saw this coming? I still don't know. Sometimes I just wish I never would have met him, so that way I'd save both of us the trouble of what happened next. Save us the fucking heartbreak and grief - I'm no good with that sort of stuff, I'm no good with tears, big blue eyes asking me why I let Aster kiss me like that, asking me why I even agreed to going out with him. I couldn't take it, and even now I still feel guilty for ever bringing him into this. Jack is a winter spirit, he shouldn't...shouldn't have been with me in the first place. God, it just causes heartache whenever I think about it. The sad thing is, though, is that when he was just standing there, the look on his face, that_ face_...I just couldn't bring myself to cry or feel any remorse when he finally flew off, tiny snowflakes falling from his jacket.

After we broke away from the kiss, we just sort of laughed, because in all reality, it was funny how there just so happened to be a mistletoe under the awning of the store we just so happened to stand under. And it was funny how we both found the kiss enticing and perfect, plus it was hilarious how I didn't even think of the reason it was snowing. Or I didn't feel the cold shiver that went down my spine or the feeling that someone was watching me. Then, my blood ran cold as I finally saw a pair of blue eyes looking at me, total heartbreak written all over his face - it must have hurt. It must have hurt a lot. Having to see your, well, I imagine first love, with someone else must have fucking hurt. I can't begin to wonder how he must have felt at that moment. I just want to hug him and tell him I'm sorry for everything I've done to him and that he should just forget about me because I was just a total bitch who didn't care for him. At the time none of that ran through my head, all that ran through my head was that I had to do it. It. As in, break...break up whatever we had. For good. Sense had finally pierced me hard and I could almost feel the blood pour out of me, but there was none gushing out. I felt it, and that's all there is to it - I had to do it. So, making up and excuse having to do with a phone call from my parents, I quickly went a small opening where the park was, along with Jack. My fists clenched and unclenched, my palms sweaty and dread running through my veins. Was I ready for this? Would I handle breaking off from him? My mind was in jumbles and I just wanted to go to sleep and wake up the next day, this being one big bad dream and looking over to my side and seeing Jack curled up fast asleep.

It wasn't a dream, and I knew I had to confront him about this. I just had to...

Once I got close enough, I looked up to find his eyes weren't their usual bright, cheerful blue. The looked shocked, confused, broken, defeated, weary, all these negative words that just _didn't suit_ Jack Frost. Not at all. The Jack Frost I knew is supposed to be always cheery and happy and content, going out and playing tricks on people like he always did, going out and bringing the beauty that is snow and ice, blue and brown and silver. I still cringe whenever I see my blue guitar, it held too many memories and too many emotions that I can't handle anymore. Hell, I was surprised I haven't forgotten about him already and that he wasn't invisible to me, what with Aster around. My shoes crunched the snow below me and I stopped, just waiting to say something. Something that would soften the blow, or something that would just calm him and myself down.

"I..." the words got caught in my throat. I couldn't say anything, I couldn't bring myself to do anything but stand there in the cold, wanting this to be over and done with. Finally, he spoke, and I wish he didn't because his voice sounded angry and hurt and confused by what I did, why I fucking did it, why I was even here.

"L-Lyric," the way he said my name would have made me shiver if I wasn't about to break his heart. "What...who..._why_?"

I held my head in my hands, hiding my face as I mumbled out, "I'm sorr-"

He didn't even let me finish my lame apology as he suddenly asked, "How? I-I thought...I thought..!"

Then, anger suddenly took hold of me. I felt guilty and terrible and sad for him but did he really think this was going to work out? Did he really think we'd stay together forever and I'd always be with him? That we'd always have fun and never have a care in the world because we had each other? "You thought what? That...that we'd be together forever, Jack? What about if I die? You'd still be young and living forever!"

It was his turn to show his anger now. "I try not to think about that! I just want to focus on you, I can't stand thinking about what would happen if you were to die!"

"Well, it's time to wake up, Jack. We'd never work out - it was fun while it lasted but we just can't anymore! I can't anymore! You don't understand-"

"No, _you_ don't understand! You don't understand anything! It could have worked out! WE could have worked out! Lyric, you didn't have to...have to do that-"

My hazel eyes flared up. He really thought we could have stayed together! He never saw this coming, he never thought this through, he never thought about me and how I'd probably start liking someone who would age and die with me! All these emotions rushed through me and I just felt like I was going to burst, because I couldn't think about this anymore, I didn't _want_ to handle this anymore. Aster was waiting for me, he's probably just waiting around wondering where the hell I am, and here I am, arguing with some winter spirit about our relationship. I never thought I'd say that, but it was the truth. It dawned on me how _ridiculous_ that sounded and how it would never had worked out, ever. Ever. I kept repeating that in my head as I replied angrily, "Yes, I actually did! Jack, I like him. Alright, I said it! I like Aster, and I'm pretty sure he does too, and he'll actually get older and die along with me! Not live on with the pain that I've died and left them alone! I just can't - can't _do_ that to you, I can't just leave you suffering!"

Jack stopped after that. Shaking his head, he just continued to stare me down until finally, I had enough. I started to turn on my heel, but before I did, I reached under my scarf and yanked the necklace from my neck, tossing it onto the snowy ground. "Good bye, Jack." With that, I started walking back towards the fountain, where Aster was probably wondering where I went after so long. I felt my face for any tears or signs of any coming on, but found none.

I felt another cold wind brush past me and I dared to look back, finding that he was gone...along with the necklace.

"I was wondering where you went," Aster joked as I approached him. I instantly felt all that guilt and anger melt away once he gave me a look with his green eyes that reminded me of soft grass. I let a smile sneak its way onto my face and I let a small laugh escape from my lips.

"Sorry, parents called to check up on me," I lied. He wouldn't believe me if I just said "Oh, sorry, I just had to thoroughly crush this spirit's heart and stomp all over the pieces". Agreeing to walk back to his car and drop me off, we began walking, hand in hand towards the parking lot. I felt at peace with myself at that moment - I did it, i had done what I had to do and stopped what Jack and I had, and instead started what I hoped would be a nice relationship with Aster.

I was dead wrong.

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**writing Jack's part was a bit of a challenge for me ... we only saw him get angry when Pitch confronted him in antartica, so I played off that and hoped for the best . Hope you guys enjoyed the torture ! :D Please leave a review and before I forget - this is before the Guardians . Aster IS the easter bunny, but he hasn't become the ACTUAL easter bunny yet . I know it's different from the movie, and sorry if it disappoints you :( I just wanted to give it a try . Anyways, there IS a sequel in the making, so don't worry ~ Song for this chapter is "Sometime Around Midnight" by the Airborne Toxic Event ( I suggest listening to it as you read it ) ! **


	15. Hey, You

**I present to you ... The second to last chapter of hey you ! Super long chapter just for you guys :)**

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You know, I'm not trying to sound like some old lady or your parents that never shut up, but it'd be nice to actually learn from your mistakes. Like, that one time you accidentally let your three year old sister use real scissors and she went on a cutting spree around your room and destroyed your first guitar? Now you know not to let her use scissors. Or when you kicked someone in the shin and try didn't have their shin guards on during soccer practice? You knew not to take soccer practice so seriously. Or how about when you dated that three hundred year old hot winter spirit and thought it could work out but ended up crushing him? You knew not to get involved with things you didn't understand.

I thought I understood. I thought I was smarter than life, smarters then this "living forever" game. But I ended up throwing it all away and forgetting about the game, forgetting about our relationship, forgetting him.

After the break up, I never saw Jack again.

Colorado still got cold, of course, and sometimes we'd get the worst blizzards (very mature, Jack). The town stayed the same for the most part, no one really changed, except me, you could say.

I grew up.

No more fairy tales, no more tooth fairy, no Santa Clause, nothing. Eventually, I graduated from high school and moved onto college, surprisingly with a few of my friends— Krystal, Ifeoma and Gabriella. The rest went either out of state or simply different colleges around town or different parts of Colorado. The house still stayed the same, Paula was still around, my parents still over worked themselves, and I still had my blue guitar. I did gain a new neighbor besides Aster, a really nice lady who looked too young for 30 and was married to a guy in the Air Force. She wasn't really a neighbor— she lived in the Air Force base next to our neighborhood and town, but I always bumped into her whenever I went into town. Her name was Rosario, and she talked about her little sister alot, and how she likes anime and things like that. The town still loved decorating for Christmas, the fountain still worked and everything was basically the same everywhere you went.

A little while after I started college, Aster and I decided to live in an apartment together to save the trouble and expenses of living in dorms at our different colleges or living back home. You could say things were serious between us, we were 22 and practically in love by then. We'd been going out for five years then. Always going on dates, having study sessions, him listening to me play the guitar, me watching him paint, and us just doing whatever we could together. I had also cut my hair sort again, just barely covering my ears in a boyish style. Everyone was sad, of course, but thy brushed it off and said I looked like a high schooler again.

One thing that didn't change was the snow. I always would just admire its beauty from the window, or sometimes just go outside and savor the feeling of the snowflakes melting on my skin. It didn't take me long to forget about Jack, I soon realized after a couple of years. What made me think of him in the first place was me noticing how slow the snow fell one evening while I was waiting for Aster to finish making some hot chocolate for the two of us. It was falling so slow I just thought to myself, _Gee, the snow is usually trying to break the_ _door down. I wonder what's up with Jack, maybe he's... _I never got to finish that thought because I stopped before I started to remember things. My chest started hurting and I instead tried to focus on Aster who returned with our hot chocolate at that moment, pushing that thought into the back of my head, so far that I hoped I would forget. I never forgot, I still remember it now. But this isn't about now, I'm telling you about then.

Then, when after a few more months of waiting, Aster proposed to me and I said yes happily and excitedly, jumping up and literally into his arms and making us crash into a pile of snow that was behind him. The news shocked my parents and Paula, who was sixteen by then, but they were so excited and happy for us. Paula forgot about Jack as well by then, ever since I stopped talking about him. Maybe she knew, maybe Jack told her. It didn't matter to me then, because we had a wedding to plan. A wedding in spring— why spring? Aster always told me he loved springtime the best, even if Colorado wasn't the best place for the season, he always looked forward to seeing the sun and smelling the nature outside, and Easter. His favorite holiday, and not because he was super religious or anything like that, but because he saw it as new hope, new beginnings. It was a nice way to look at it, instead of it being all about the church or religions.

My friends were so happy for me, they loved the idea and wanted to help in any way they could, and they did. We went dress shopping at every store we could find and they helped me stay away from any foods out of my diet range. Aster couldn't stop talking about it, and because we were out if college, it was the only things on our minds besides our jobs and paying the bills. We were practically married already, he just liked the idea of seeing me in a dress and I liked the idea if seeing him in a tuxedo, and we liked the idea of having everyone see how much we loved each other and how much we wanted to spend our lives together.

I think I'll just stop there for a second.

Let me tell you one thing. Please take my word for it. Everyone says it, everyone knows it, but you don't really know it until it happens to you.

Life is a bitch.

Life can take your perfectly normal life and screw it around and paint it different colors or make it different shapes to see what you would do. What make you tick, what gets you going, what will break you into tiny little pieces. It doesn't care, it thinks it's _fun_.

Sick.

Life is sick. It's twisted, it's a game we all are forced to play and forced to to along with. It makes you do things that you don't want to do, it gives you things and then takes them back in a blink of an eye.

I should know.

It was a regular day. Nothing really notable thing was going on, just a normal day of work and then coming home to meet my fiancé for some dinner and sleep. I already was looking forward to feeling his arm around me as we drifted off into deep sleep and slipped into our dreams. Inhaling his clean, nature like scent and drawing patterns across his tattoos that were in his arms and making fun of his growing stubble that he always shaves but never gets rid of. All I wanted to do was just hear him open the door and say, "I'm home!" And I'd meet him and he'd hug me, asking me how my day was and I ask him the same, then we'd start on dinner and make up random talk. We'd clean the dishes and walk up to bed, tired as usual, but still have enough strength to wash up and then finally fall onto the sheets, ready to just sleep. Other days we'd, of course, make love, but on days like these, we'd be too tired and too content with just sleeping next to each other that we'd save it for another night.

After stepping into the kitchen once I had changed into more comfortable clothes, I got a head start on making dinner and waited for Aster to get home. My ring shone brightly on my finger and I gave it a small smile, admiring the shape of the diamond and the curve of the ring's gold slivers running down the sides. He told me it took three months to find the perfect one, and he apologized for it taking so long. I remember laughing and calling him a dummy for apologizing. As I started on dinner, my phone buzzed in my pocket and I paused, checking over the number and deciding to answer it just to amuse whoever it was on the other line.

"Hello?"

"Is this miss...Lyric Luera?" A female voice asked on the other line, sounding a bit urgent yet calm at the same time. It confused me but sort of got me worried at the same time. Was my family alright?

"Yes, who is this?" I asked, getting straight to the point and wasting no time.  
They paused on the other line. "This is Colorado Springs hospital, miss Luera, we're calling you about a mister Aster Mund. There was a shooting at his place of work and his injuries are serious..."

I dropped my phone.

I got the hell out of the house and started up the car, muttering prayers in Portuguese, English and Spanish as I forgot about everything at that moment except getting to the hospital and seeing Aster. Adrenaline pumped through my veins as everything whizzed past me, just a blur of colors and buildings and people, all carrying on with their lives, oblivious to my world crashing around me. It's funny— how you could be going through pure hell, suffering and just wanting to do away with yourself with drugs or sex, while everyone else seems so happy and so damn ignorant to the people around them and just care about themselves. Of course, why should I be talking? Up until five minutes ago, I was the exact same, only paying attention to myself and what was happening in my life. It's amazing how easily you can tip the scale and make everything you've worked so hard to get just spill over and disappear over the edge.

Finally, I reached the hospital and rushed through the doors, wasting no time in asking where a certain Aster Mund was. The woman behind the desk must have seen my type of situations a lot, because she gave me no sympathy whatsoever as she pointed to a hallway leading to the elevators. Her voice seemed flat as she gave me simple instructions, "Take the elevator to the fourteenth floor, ask the people at th desk there." I shouldn't have said thank you, but I did anyway and made my way quickly towards the glass elevators and chose the fourteenth floor— the hospital was big, I knew it must have had at least thirty two floors— watching the numbers change on the small screen placed at the top of the elevator's doors. I placed the car keys in my sweatpants' pocket and fiddled anxiously with my shirt sleeve, a bit cold since I forgot to grab a jacket in my rush to get to the hospital. No matter, my main priority was seeing Aster and hoping he was alright. The injuries couldn't have been that bad, maybe a few scrapes and a few bruises, no bullet wounds or slash wounds, nothing with too much blood, nothing impaled in his chest or neck or head or anywhere, he'd be alright, safe, and maybe he'd be able to leave in a few days. Once the doors finally opened, I brushed past some people waiting to get in and met with the man behind the desk, asking for Aster once again. He nodded and pointed to a room at the end of the hall, "Mr. Mund should be in that room, room 482, ma'm." After I was given a visitor's sticker, I took quick steps towards the room, mentally preparing myself for whatever lay behind that door. Aster would look healthy, alright, welcome me in and ask me his usual questions with how I was doing, how my day went, the doctor would tell us he was in no serious condition, he'd be able to go home soon. I kept pushing the woman on the phone's report about Aster and replaced them with happy thoughts, just wanting this to be alright.

I gained the courage I needed and knocked gently on the brown door, turning the door handle slowly and pushing it open, relief already washing over me—

Then I saw Aster.

Tubes hooked up to his arm and his wrist, bandages covering his chest and stomach, and a few nasty, purple bruises and fresh scratches scattered on his face. His chest was barely moving, just rising and falling extremely and dangerously slowly, the heart monitor on a side table letting a steady beep out slowly. He looked terrible. He looked broken. He must have not heard me open the door because once I was at his side, he finally noticed I was here. His voice came out in a cough, soft and almost like it was ready to break. "Lyric," Even when he was completely on the edge of death, he was smiling. His eyes seemed to brighten up as I gently took his hand in mine, tears threatening to spill over onto my cheeks.

"A-Aster, what...what happened? Who did this?" My voice was shaky, and all I could do was just ask what happened, all I could do was demand answers to keep from crying. Aster shook his head, instead giving my hand a soft squeeze in response. His thumb ran over the ring on my finger and all we could was just be in each other's prescence, reveling in what could be the last few minutes together. After a few minutes of gentle talking, I gave our parents a call, letting them know to come tot he hospital to see Aster and to not worry (though, I think I was telling myself this more than them), that Aster was going to be alright. His parents were already on their way when I called them, having already gotten a call from the hospital a while ago. After I hung up, I turned back to him, his broken form on the edge of sleep or...I didn't want to think of that. He was going to live, he had to. He had to! We were engaged...he had to live.

"You look beaten up," I said quietly as we waited for our families to arrive. Aster let out a small laugh, which sounded more like a small cough, and nodded slightly.

"Yeah, I...got a few bullets lodged in me...but she'll be apples, I'm sure..." He sounded tired and almost sleepy, and that heart monitor was driving me crazy with how slow it was going. Why wasn't it speeding up? Or at least getting to normal human speed? "When...will our parents rock up?"

"They said they were on their way, they'll be here soon, probably." I answered as I brushed some brown hair from his eyes. It scared me to death to think I'd never see his green eyes open and full of life again. I knew it couldn't happen, I knew he'd get through this, that we would get through this. Sure, the marriage would have to be postponed, but at least he'd be safe and all fixed up. We heard a soft knock at the door and in rushed Aster's parents, running over to check if he was alright as I respectively moved out of the way. His parents were very nice, they seemed to like me, I mean they had to if he was marrying me. They asked me how I was and I calmly replied I was fine, but inside I was screaming and crying and just wanting to go home already with Aster. It was January and the snow fell steadily outside the window in his hospital room as his parents asked him the same questions I did, with him replying the same answers as he did with me. After that we waited on anything to happen, my family to show up, the doctor to show up, something. After a while of just sitting by his side and holding his weak hand, another knock was heard and in came my parents and Paula, quietly yet urgently, attacking me with questions about what happened. After I answered them, we waited in comforsble silence, my parents talking to Aster's, Paula talking to me as I stayed by Aster's side and occasionally she'd ask Aster how he was doing, to which he would just nod and give a small smile.

Everything seemed fine. It was going okay, calm, and normal, as if we weren't at a hospital with a seriously injured Australian.

It didn't take me long to feel his hand suddenly yet slowly go limp in mine, and I stood up fast from the stool I was sitting on. Paula asked what was wrong, butvI didn't answer as I was too busy checking his neck and wrist for a pulse, any sign of life.

That's when I finally heard the heart monitor stop beeping and instead start to let a long drone out.

His eyes were closed, his face seemed paler than it was two minutes ago, his chest stopped rising up and down steadily, he just was...broken. He couldn't function anymore, he couldn't carry on.

I thought I would scream. I thought I would sob and demand that the hospital do something, but when they rushed in with their equipment ready to attemp to save him, I back away and let them push us all out into the hall, his parents yelling for them to please save their son, my parents asking me to listen to them, what's wrong, Lyric, why aren't you saying anything, say something, but what could I say? What did they want me to do! What did they expect me to do! Break the door down and try to save him myself, try to bring him back to life, try to be the hero? The ring felt heavy on my finger as everything happened around me as if in slow motion, everything just piling on top of one another, the yelling in the room, the yelling out in the hall, the wetness on my face, my whole body going limp as well, everything.

I felt broken myself.

His name just kept repeating in my head over and over, a mantra that wouldn't shut up, a song that never ended.

He was dead.

Aster was dead.

Nothing the medical team could do would save him, they told us the news after a few minutes of agonizing silence and waiting. Everyone looked to me, expecting me to break down and sob or scream or cry out loud or weep...and I did cry. I did weep. Just silently. Silent, like the snow, like the steady fall of snowflakes out your window. I felt detached from everything, my parents, Paula, my friends, work, the house, just done. I couldn't think straight after that, I couldn't do much of anything after that. I didn't even...I didn't even get to say goodbye to him. Or one last I love you, or one last kiss or hug. _Nothing_. I gave him nothing. He moved on with nothing from me, like Jack.

Aster's parents left crying and sorrowfully, bidding my family good bye and thanks for coming. My family left soon, too, after trying to give me some comfort or try to get some response out of my besides a head nod or a head shake. I was left alone then, picking myself up and taking one last look towards the door, room 482, before taking off slowly, the elevator bringing me back down to the first floor. Not many people were at the hospital by now, around one in the morning, and I didn't take a look to the desk to see the woman's reaction— she probably knew what happened anyway. The doors slid open and I walked out, my boots crunching in the snow as I made my way to the car, grabbing my keys and sliding in, the cold welcoming me in like a blanket. Not like I felt it, anyway, everything was too empty to feel.

I guess you could say I came out of shock then, because finally I realized I didn't walk back out with Aster, and I wasn't going to go home and have dinner with him ever again, sleep in the same bed its him ever again, never hold him, never kiss him, never hear him say my name again, nothing. My eyes watered and my hands shook, and I finally let it spill out as I rested my head against the steering wheel, my sobs coming out choked and broken, taking gasps for air, wailing Aster's name and how _sorry_ I was for not doing anything to save him, not helping him.

Aster was gone.

Which concludes my story thus far. Right now I'm just at the apartment, drinking hot chocolate and looking out the window, my blue guitar to my side. It's been getting better since that. I've been getting better. It still hurts, but not as much, knowing he's okay. That's all that matters, that he's fine and I'm...the same.

Though, I am getting a bit tired of being in the same position of sitting at the window, so grabbing my jacket and scarf, I take the keys and lock the door, stepping out into the complex and down the steps towards the old woods, looking to get away for a minute.

It was around springtime, yet it was still cold here in Colorado. The streets were quiet, people inside their own homes by now, as it was around seven in the evening. Perfect time for the woods, I thought as I made my way around tricky branches and twigs on the ground, leaves crunching beneath my blue converse. Is it me, or is it getting really cold now? I feel small chills down my spine as I walk, like there's just a cold air to the area around me. I don't like it, yet it feels familiar to me at the same time. But I can't be cold, it's almost spring here, isn't it supposed to be getting warmer? I mutter under my breath about the cold and how stupid it was, how useless the season of winter was and why the hell here was even a reason for the earth to decrease in temperature—

"That's not very nice."

I freeze in my tracks. Was that? No. No! I don't even remember him all that well...do I?

_If loving you was wrong, then no, no _

Do I dare turn around?

_This isn't love again_

Would I be happy?

_No no _

Would he be happy?

_Don't leave me who loves you _

Just take the damn risk, Lyric.

So I do.

I turn around, my eyes meeting bright blue, and he utters just one sentence.

"Hey, you."

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**hope you liked it ! It's not over yet ! There's still one more chapter left, then I'll be starting on the sequel . Tell me what you think guys ! You've stuck with me til the almost end lol . Review, leave a favorite or follow if you enjoyed and I'll see you next time : D song for this chapter and the whole story is "Hey You" by CNBlue ~**


	16. Epilogue

**I can finally choose the "Completed" option on one of my ongoing stories :)**

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Idiot, why'd you treat her so coldly? She could have - she could have... The words die slowly in his mind as Jack took careful steps on the telephone wires he was currently walking on, his mind jumbled up over the recent conversation with Lyric he just had. It's been months, but he still couldn't get over how mean he seemed towards her - but it was her fault! If she hadn't began dating that other guy, none of this would have happened! They could have stuck to themselves and... Jack sighs. It probably would have had to happen sooner or later. In hindsight, Lyric had been right to leave. It was better this way, and yet...he couldn't help but feel a bit sad over the fact that she didn't even touch him, no hug, no bodily contact whatsoever. What did he expect, for her to suddenly just kiss him like she used to, for her to hug him and never let go? No, it was over between them. He knew it, but he wished he didn't at the same time. Hopping down from the telephone wires, he lingers around the small town for a while; he didn't know where he was, really, but it was snowy, so a little more snow couldn't hurt. His jacket hood covers his head and his blue eyes lazily scan the area around him, not really taking notice to the houses or the snowfall he was causing or the - what the heck was that blur that just ran by? That piques his curiosity and he takes off, the wind taking him a bit farther into a nearby forest that was different from the one Lyric always went into. He keeps a lookout for anything out of the ordinary and quickly spots the same gray blur darting through trees and dodging branches - what was this thing? He darts for the blur and dodges branches and trees himself, trying to keep up with this thing that wouldn't sit still. Eventually, the thing takes notice of something following it and comes to a stop, and Jack nearly runs into a tree when he notices.

It stands up fully, it being much taller than Jack and he almost feels intimidated - almost. It really just looks like a tall, lean...bunny. Covered in fur with designs etched onto the arms and head, with ears standing fully up and seemingly alert, plus the large hind legs that were suited for speed (which must explain the speed he was going). Then Jack notices the eyes. They were green, but something about them tells him he's seen them before. Green like grass and nature, bright and, right now, in a confused glare directed towards himself. He knew where they were from, he's positive!

"Mate, can I ask you to maybe get on with whatever it is you need to tell me? Or do you just want to stand there?" he asks, his Australian accented voice ringing a sudden bell in the winter spirit's mind.

It can't be...no, no! Didn't Lyric say he was dead? Unless... The moon suddenly seems to shine a bit brighter then as his eyes met green again and he took off, clutching his staff in his hands tightly as he tried to get his thoughts in order. He was dead! The Man in the Moon couldn't have made him...couldn't have done that, no!

One thing he knows right then, is that he'd make sure he never saw Lyric. If that meant snowing on whatever it is he does, so be it.

That Aster lost his chance, and Jack would make sure he never got another one.

* * *

"Paula, you remember that...that guy we used to play with? When I was in high school and you were in grade school?"

"Um...oh! Oh, yeah! Wasn't his name...uh..."

"J-Jack,"

She gasps. "Jack! Now I remember! He was so much fun, we'd have snowball fights and everything! I wonder where he went, I never saw him after you graduated from high school." Paula shifts her scarf from her face and hugs her coat tighter to her body, trying to preserve more heat in the cold. Winter can be a bitch, as I've said countless times before. I offered to take Paula out to eat, since I never do anymore, and it'd be nice to just chat and see what she's been up to. She's about to graduate high school, I knew that much, but I don't know of her love life or relationships and as sisters we needed to talk about this so I can tease her about it.

"Y-Yeah," I agree, hiding my blush behind my own scarf. Not much can be said about that conversation we had a couple of months ago - other than talking about how Aster was gone, we didn't really talk about much anything else. It was awkward yet comforting at the same time, he asked how I was, I asked how he was, Paula was doing fine, his snow things were going fine, and then...that was it. Not much to say about it, and I can't really blame him. It'd been years since we've last seen each other, what did I want him to do, kiss me, hug me? No, I could tell it was over between us. We can just remain friends, close friends, but nothing more. I kick a pebble that had been with me for about two blocks out of the way, instead just focusing on the sidewalk of the town. Cars pass by slowly due to the heavy snow and all of the shops were open for business now that it was around Thanksgiving, their warmness inviting and prices not so inviting. Paula starts talking about her school's graduation ceremony, which was coming up in a couple of months now, and describing how she hoped she'd get Valedictorian, plus graduate top of her class. Obviously she'd be all of that, she's Paula. She gets whatever she wants.

We stop at a street crossing and wait for the light to turn green to cross patiently, almost to the italian restaurant across the fountain square. I can already smell those appetizer bread and marinara sauce; my stomach grumbled and Paula giggled at my eagerness to eat. I'm always eager to eat. The light turned green and we began walking, making sure no cars were going crazy and trying to "squeeze" by us and accidentally run us over. Hold on, what was that sound? Tires screeching and an engine revving - what the hell? I look towards the side and immediately my eyes widen in shock at the bright red car speeding down the street, ignoring the street light it seems. I panick and the only thing in my sight was Paula, so I push her from the street, surprising her and the thing that I hear now is my name being screamed and then that car is really close now, like if I try to run I'd still hit so I stay still, horror pulsing through my veins as the those bright lights get closer, closer, closer -

****

Man, I never got to eat my last bite of food before I died...

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**I wanna thank everyone who ever took the time to read this :) this was very fun to write and a really fun experience ! I appreciate every one of your reviews and favorites and follows, it's made me become a better writer ! 3 Take the time to drop a review telling me what you thought of the last chapter ! ^_^ now it's time for the sequel ! :) **


	17. Sequel

**The sequel is up! It's under the name "Who Is In Your Heart Now?", so please check it out and drop a review! ^w^**


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